Liverpool look set to feature in FIFA's plans to expand the Club World Cup after the game's governing body's latest proposal received the backing of European clubs.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has long expressed his eagerness to expand the mid-season competition to a 32-team format, which would include 12 of Europe's top-ranked sides.
However, after months of dialogue, the plans have now officially acquired the support of the European Club Association - which is chaired by Paris Saint-German owner Nasser Al-Khelaifi and sports the interest of teams involved in UEFA competitions.
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On Monday, the ECA signed a renewed Memorandum of Understanding with FIFA, which will run until the end of 2030, at the 29th ECA General Assembly in Hungary.
The MoU also sees European clubs pen their support to FIFA's International Match Calendar as well as their backing to a revised Club World Cup format every four years, starting in 2025. Additionally, a yearly fixture between the winners of the Champions League and an intercontinental play-off will be staged, while the Club World Cup will also be introduced into the women's game.
Chelsea and Real Madrid were the first two European sides to secure qualification for the 2025 finals after they won the Champions League in 2021 and 2022 respectively. The next two winners of the competition will also be guaranteed a place, while the remaining eight spots will be awarded to the highest-ranked clubs over a four-year period. The remaining 24 places will be awarded to teams from CONMEBOL, Concacaf, AFC, CAF, OFC and the host country
On the international stage, Liverpool will be among those set to benefit from increased funding to the Clubs Benefits Programme, which sees clubs compensated for the release of players during the World Cup. The 2018 and 2022 editions saw FIFA set aside $209 million but following the new landmark agreement the game's governing body will pay out $355 million in 2026 and 2030.
At the December finals, Jurgen Klopp's side was represented by seven first-team players as Jordan Henderson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate joined Alisson Becker, Fabinho and Darwin Nunez in Qatar. However, the Club Benefits Programme also compensates clubs where players have played in the previous two seasons during the qualifying stages of the World Cup. However, they will only receive a percentage of the fee.
In the Reds' case, it meant they received a percentage of payments for Neco Williams, Takumi Minamino and Xherdan Shaqiri, who all competed for their respective nations in the Middle East.
While Infantino labelled the extended MoU agreement as a "significant day for the future of football and its long-term stability," Klopp is sure to have different views on the matter as someone who has been a public critic of plans to squeeze more fixtures into an already congested schedule.
Speaking to German publication Kicker in August, the Liverpool boss slammed UEFA for their plans to add more games into the Champions League group stages from 2024 onwards with a revised Swiss model set to add an additional four group stage fixtures.
"Everyone pulls [new tournaments], nobody thinks about the players," said Klopp. "Not one. New tournaments are always being invented. Now we're making the World Cup bigger so that other teams can also take part. We're also making the European Championship bigger, amazing!
"A reasonable solution must be found. It does not consist of constantly inventing new competitions and extending them. It's madness.
"I'm well aware that I'm making an extremely good living from the whole story. I have enough vacation time. The players don't have it. We have to change that at some point."
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