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The reporter reported coldly FIFPRO and the Europa League took FIFA to court, but not UEFA, which also increased the number of matches. It is only because UEFA has negotiated with the European Club Association (ECA) and FIFPRO in advance on the issue of the expansion of the Champions League and the change to the Swiss round. But in the eyes of Real Madrid president Florentino, UEFA and FIFA are the same thing, both profiting from increasing the number of matches, putting players' health at risk and disrespecting fans.

If FIFPRO and the Europa League have declared war on FIFA, the president of Real Madrid has declared war on UEFA and FIFA at the same time, putting Real Madrid face to face with two of the world's biggest football governing bodies.

Although Real Madrid were invited to participate in next year's Club World Cup, they did not include the possible benefits of the Club World Cup in their budget for this season, which shows their skepticism about the club.

The "victim" of the galactic fleet appeared to say

Choosing to open fire on the two international governing bodies at the club's annual general meeting on 24 November, the 77-year-old Florentino was anything but casual.

Florentino has been blunt: the expansion of the Champions League and the Club World Cup have added 14 games to the season compared to the past, which is equivalent to an additional two-and-a-half-month competition cycle. Real Madrid could play as many as 82 games throughout the season and have had as many as 22 injuries so far this season, with seven serious cruciate ligament injuries in the last 12 months. According to the attending physician, these serious injuries are mainly caused by excessive fatigue. He also cites the results of a study commissioned by FIFPRO: "This season's schedule is busier than ever. Bellingham has played 251 games, compared to 54 for his age. ”

According to the Real Madrid president, the number of games leads to an increase in injuries, fatigue and poor form, and the end result is a serious reduction in the enjoyment of football. Playing without superstars and spectators is the biggest disrespect to the fans.

At the same time, the president of Real Madrid pointed out that the lack of adequate and regular rest can directly affect the player's career: "FIFA's 32-team Club World Cup will deprive players of normal rest time. At the same time, UEFA only organized 488 matches a year 10 years ago, but now it has increased to 769 games, just to make more money, without any regard for the health and safety of its players. ”

Florentino also pointed out that the increase in the number of matches means that the value of each game decreases. Such a match will only excite the fans at the end, not at the beginning, as expected. Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois also publicly questioned that the UEFA Nations League created by UEFA is just a money game: "We only participate because it is an additional benefit of UEFA in the field of national team competition. Courtois says that only three weeks of vacation is simply not enough for the player to continue healthy for 12 months at the highest level.

The Belgian goalkeeper suffered two serious injuries in eight months: in August 2023 and April 2024, he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and a meniscus in his right knee. But he is not alone, with Real Madrid's first team suffering serious injuries in the last year, including Alaba, Militão and Carvajal. No one understands better than Florentino the impact injuries can have on Real Madrid's results. In November 2023, the Gauteng European Men's Football Injury Index showed that players from the top five leagues participating in the World Cup in Qatar took an average of eight days longer to recover from injuries after a match, mainly due to a significant increase in serious injuries to the ankle (170%), calf/tibia (200%) and hamstring (130%). FIFPRO is not surprised by this: the preparation time for the first seven World Cups has been reduced from an average of 31 days to 7 days, and the preparation time before the start of club events has been reduced from an average of 37 days to just 8 days!

More importantly, what's next?

As early as June this year, in an interview with Italian media, Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti made it clear: "FIFA seems to have forgotten that players and clubs will not participate in that competition (referring to the Club World Cup)." A Real Madrid match alone is worth 20 million euros, and FIFA wants to use this income to pay for the entire tournament, which is impossible. Just like other clubs, we decline invitations. Although Real Madrid later denied publicly rejecting the invitation to the Club World Cup, and Carlo Ancelotti also turned to say that his interview was misinterpreted by the media, Florentino's speech at Real Madrid's annual general meeting once again proved the hostile relationship between the Galactic Fleet and UEFA and FIFA.

Clearly, Real Madrid's statement is urging FIFA to reach an agreement with participating clubs on the prize money as soon as possible. FIFA is also slashing the expected cost of the Club World Cup – from $4 billion to $8-$1 billion, while promising $8-$1 billion in profits. However, broadcasters and sponsors still maintain a wait-and-see attitude, which also confirms Florentino's judgment: "Football is suffering serious economic losses, Ligue 1 has just suffered a complete disaster, and the copyright fee has fallen from 1 billion euros to 500 million. He also does not believe FIFA will be able to secure enough sponsorship for the Club World Cup, especially since Infantino has pledged not to use FIFA's US$4 billion reserves to cover a possible shortfall in hosting the Club World Cup, which means that if not enough rights and sponsorship revenue can be recruited, the Club World Cup is likely to be postponed indefinitely as it was 24 years ago.

In addition to his public opposition to UEFA and FIFA, the Real Madrid president is also thinking about the future of football: "Half of the 10-1.4 billion young people are rapidly losing interest in football because of other forms of entertainment. However, the two governing bodies are still increasing the number of matches for the sake of immediate interests, accelerating the loss of football spectacle. Of course, although Florentino did not mention a future solution, the media and fans knew that he was pointing to the European Super League. At the end of last year, A22, the European Super League trading company, won a lawsuit in Luxembourg against the UEFA monopoly to organize the competition, but that does not mean that clubs led by Real Madrid can organize regular competitions on their own. In this regard, Real Madrid's attitude is to wait: "The world of football needs to change at the right time. But when the patience of all people has reached a critical point, the change of the times will come. ”​​​​