FIFA president Gianni Infantino has announced plans to reformat and expand the current Club World Cup to be "like a [international] World Cup."
In its current format, the competition contains seven teams from six different confederations but that is set to change in 2025 when yet more football will be added to an already-packed schedule.
The tournament usually takes place every December but plans were shelved this year to accommodate the World Cup in Qatar, although the tournament will still go ahead in Morocco in 2023.
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However, from 2025, up to 32 teams will feature. Despite being so committed to his plans, Infantino is yet to confirm how this will work in principle: "The new men's Club World Cup will therefore take place in 2025 and will feature 32 teams, the best teams in the world. Of course, the details of that still need to be discussed and agreed, but the 32-team tournament will go ahead, making it really like a World Cup."
Even though the logistics haven't been established, the mention of 'best teams in the world' suggests that Premier League sides, including the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham, will have a better chance of qualifying for - and therefore winning - the competition.
Plus, if it's indeed going to be like a 'World Cup', then one can assume that the tournament will work similarly to how a World Cup is run. That could involve eight groups of four in the group stages - with two qualifying from each after one round of playing each other - followed by the four usual knockout rounds, beginning with the last 16.
That being said, that theory could take up to 7 games and may span up to four weeks of action. Leagues across the world are unlikely to sanction such a competition, so the logistics of it all evidently need some work.
Meanwhile, Infantino also confirmed that a new four-team event entitled the 'World Series' will also be coming soon and will represent teams from different confederations. It will be a friendly tournament, played with nations from around the world. FIFA's president said: "[Plan] to use the March windows in the even years to organise friendly tournaments between four teams from different confederations. A FIFA World Series type of event."
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