Latest news with #FIFProEurope
Express Tribune
3 days ago
- Sport
- Express Tribune
'Footballers afraid to speak out against hectic schedule'
Top footballers are afraid to speak out against playing too many matches for fear of the impact it could have on their careers, the general secretary of global players' union FIFPro said on Friday. Alex Phillips was speaking after FIFPro held a meeting in Amsterdam with 58 national player unions from around the world to discuss concerns over the way the sport's world governing body FIFA is managing global football. The meeting came less than two weeks after the end of the first 32-team Club World Cup in the United States, a tournament hailed as a huge success by FIFA president Gianni Infantino but criticised by FIFPro for the demands it has placed on players already faced with a crowded schedule. "Before the Club World Cup, I was speaking to some of the top stars and they were saying they hadn't had a rest for 'X' amount of time," Phillips said. "One of them even said, 'I'll only get a rest when I get injured'. Others were resigned actually, and cynical about speaking up. "Then you see some of the same players two weeks later having to record social media videos saying 'We think the Club World Cup is great,' because their employers are telling them to do it. "You have this contradictory situation where players can't speak up. They are in an invidious position. They can speak up but it might have consequences." FIFPro said that FIFA's recent focus on the Club World Cup in the United States was an example of the body ignoring many fundamentally more important issues facing players around the world. "It is unacceptable for an organisation that claims global leadership to turn a blind eye to the basic needs of the players," FIFPro said in a statement, notably citing the "overloaded" match calendar, heat concerns at the Club World Cup and an "ongoing disregard for players' social rights". FIFPro Europe filed a complaint to the European Commission last year accusing FIFA of abusing its position with regards to its handling of the international match calendar. The summit hosted by the union on Friday came after it was left out of a meeting held by FIFA on the eve of the recent Club World Cup final. Sergio Marchi, the Argentinian president of FIFPro, this week slammed Infantino's leadership of FIFA and accused him of running an "autocracy" in an interview with The Athletic. FIFA hit back at FIFPro in a statement on Friday as it called for dialogue "with legitimate bodies that put player welfare first" and said it had tried unsuccessfully to get the union to attend its meeting in New York on July 12. AFP
Morocco World
4 days ago
- Sport
- Morocco World
FIFPro Accuses FIFA of Ignoring Player Welfare Amid Match Overload
Rabat – Top footballers are increasingly reluctant to voice concerns over the growing number of matches due to fears of professional repercussions, according to FIFPro, the global players' union. The union raised the alarm following a high-level summit in Amsterdam, which brought together 58 national player unions from around the world. The meeting, held to address growing frustration with FIFA 's management of the global football calendar, came shortly after the conclusion of the expanded 32-team Club World Cup in the United States. While FIFA President Gianni Infantino has hailed the tournament as a major success, FIFPro has criticized it for exacerbating an already overloaded match schedule. Alex Phillips, FIFPro's general secretary, said that some of the sport's top athletes are privately expressing concern but remain publicly silent due to fear of employer backlash. 'Before the Club World Cup, I spoke with leading players who said they hadn't had proper rest for extended periods,' Phillips reported. 'One even told me, 'I'll only get a break when I'm injured.' Many feel pressured to promote tournaments they don't support, creating a contradiction between public statements and private experiences.' FIFPro stated that the growing emphasis on expanding competitions, such as the Club World Cup, reflects FIFA's disregard for pressing player welfare concerns, including scheduling fatigue, extreme weather conditions, and the protection of social rights. In an official statement, FIFPro criticized FIFA for failing to address these issues adequately. 'It is unacceptable for an organization that claims global leadership to turn a blind eye to the basic needs of the players,' the statement read. FIFPro Europe also filed a formal complaint last year with the European Commission, accusing FIFA of abusing its dominant position in relation to the international match calendar. The latest friction follows FIFPro's exclusion from a FIFA-hosted meeting in New York on July 12, held on the eve of the Club World Cup final. The union emphasized that the lack of involvement in such key discussions further signals a growing disconnect between FIFA leadership and player representatives. Sergio Marchi, President of FIFPro and former Argentine footballer, voiced strong criticism of Infantino's leadership in a recent interview with The Athletic, accusing him of running FIFA as an 'autocracy.' FIFA responded on Friday, condemning what it described as an increasingly 'divisive and contradictory tone' from FIFPro's leadership. The Zurich-based body defended its efforts to involve the union, stating that it had invited FIFPro to the July 12 meeting, but that the union declined. 'FIFA is extremely disappointed by FIFPro's decision to pursue public confrontation rather than constructive dialogue,' the organization stated. It added that such actions appear to be driven by the leadership's desire to 'preserve their own personal positions and interests.' Tags: FIFAFIfprofootball players
New Straits Times
5 days ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Top footballers afraid to speak out against playing too many games, says FIFPro chief
AMSTERDAM: Top footballers are afraid to speak out against playing too many matches for fear of the impact it could have on their careers, the general secretary of global players' union FIFPro said on Friday. Alex Phillips was speaking after FIFPro held a meeting in Amsterdam with 58 national player unions from around the world to discuss concerns over the way the sport's world governing body FIFA is managing global football. The meeting came less than two weeks after the end of the first 32-team Club World Cup in the United States, a tournament hailed as a huge success by FIFA president Gianni Infantino but criticised by FIFPro for the demands it has placed on players already faced with a crowded schedule. "Before the Club World Cup, I was speaking to some of the top stars and they were saying they hadn't had a rest for 'X' amount of time," Phillips said. "One of them even said, 'I'll only get a rest when I get injured'. Others were resigned actually, and cynical about speaking up. "Then you see some of the same players two weeks later having to record social media videos saying 'We think the Club World Cup is great,' because their employers are telling them to do it. "You have this contradictory situation where players can't speak up. They are in an invidious position. They can speak up but it might have consequences." FIFPro said that FIFA's recent focus on the Club World Cup in the United States was an example of the body ignoring many fundamentally more important issues facing players around the world. "It is unacceptable for an organisation that claims global leadership to turn a blind eye to the basic needs of the players," FIFPro said in a statement, notably citing the "overloaded" match calendar, heat concerns at the Club World Cup and an "ongoing disregard for players' social rights." FIFPro Europe filed a complaint to the European Commission last year accusing FIFA of abusing its position with regards to its handling of the international match calendar. The summit hosted by the union on Friday came after it was left out of a meeting held by FIFA on the eve of the recent Club World Cup final. Sergio Marchi, the Argentinian president of FIFPro, this week slammed Infantino's leadership of FIFA and accused him of running an "autocracy" in an interview with The Athletic. FIFA hit back at FIFPro in a statement on Friday as it called for dialogue "with legitimate bodies that put player welfare first" and said it had tried unsuccessfully to get the union to attend its meeting in New York on July 12. "FIFA is extremely disappointed by the increasingly divisive and contradictory tone adopted by FIFPRO leadership," the Zurich-based organisation said.
