During a hectic soccer season where players have mentioned the possibility of a strike, their union has joined forces with domestic leagues to challenge FIFA in the European Union. This challenge focuses on FIFA’s approach to introducing new and larger men’s competitions.
The European branch of the player union FIFPRO and the 33-nation European Leagues group have submitted a formal complaint. They claim that FIFA does not properly consult stakeholders about decisions that benefit its commercial interests.
This is the latest legal issue FIFA faces, as it has dealt with pressures from rulings related to the European Super League, player agent regulations, and the global transfer market this month.
On the field, FIFA is set to launch a 32-team Club World Cup next June and July in the United States, which will include 12 teams from Europe. Additionally, the 2026 World Cup in North America will expand to 48 teams and last an extra week.
FIFPRO expressed concerns that “the oversaturated international football calendar risks player safety and wellbeing.” They shared a video featuring star players like Kylian Mbappé discussing their increasing workloads.
Mbappé stated, “You have so many competitions and we are happy to play, but when it’s too much, it’s too much,” during an awards ceremony in May.
The complaint filed with the European Commission focuses on FIFA, which organizes the schedule for national-team matches. Clubs are required to release players for these selections.
“The complainants are not asking for financial compensation from FIFA but for a fair and inclusive decision-making process,” said their lawyer, Mark English. He added that they are requesting the Commission to take action against FIFA for violating European competition laws.
The complaint does not mention UEFA, which has committed many players to additional games this season by expanding the Champions League, Europa League, and Nations League.
“We have some representation (at UEFA) and we use that,” said Mathieu Moreuil, a lawyer for the English Premier League, when asked why UEFA was not included in the complaint. “With FIFA, we have literally nothing.”
In the past, league officials, clubs, and unions had a formal role on FIFA’s Football Stakeholder Committee, but it was disbanded in 2021 by President Gianni Infantino.
This season, European domestic leagues have had their schedule options limited due to four additional midweeks from September to January now taken up by UEFA club competitions.
Belgian league CEO Lorin Parys compared FIFA’s new club event to a threat, similar to the Super League plan that elite clubs tried to implement in 2021, which was stopped by fan opposition.
“Here comes FIFA through our back door whistling and yelling: ‘Surprise,’ saying: ‘We have got a present for you guys,’ and it’s really the Super League under a different name,” Parys said.
The leagues’ complaint against FIFA also includes not being properly consulted during discussions about the new calendar for national-team games through 2030, which forces them to cancel profitable weekend matches.
FIFA has stated that its offers to discuss the matter this year were not accepted. The complaint filed in Brussels, which is part of the European Union made up of 27 nations, also includes Spain’s La Liga and claims that FIFA is abusing its dominant position in soccer.
The complaint argues that FIFA’s role as the governing body and regulator conflicts with its commercial goals as a competition organizer.
FIFA has previously suggested that there is hypocrisy in European soccer, which allows clubs to play profitable offseason matches worldwide while it has a responsibility to protect and develop the sport globally.
