Uefa chief Ceferin has ‘grave concerns’ over biennial World Cup plan

Aleksander Ceferin, the president of Uefa, has “grave concerns” about Fifa’s plan to stage the World Cup every two years – and criticised the lack of consultation from football’s governing body.

Ceferin’s intervention exposes the significant hostility many in the European game feel towards Fifa’s attempts to ram through a biennial World Cup amid widespread opposition from national associations and clubs.

In a letter to Football Supporters Europe, Ceferin said the group had “extremely valid and important” concerns about the potential damage to the game. “Uefa and its national associations have serious reservations and grave concerns surrounding reports of Fifa’s plans” Ceferin told FSE executive director Ronan Evain, before promising that Uefa would, in regards to Fifa, “closely scrutinize and hold to full account”.

“Allow me to assure you that Uefa stands with you and the fans on this important issue,” Ceferin added. “We must work together to defend the interests of the game and reinforce the position of fans as key stakeholders.”

The idea of World Cup every two years, first proposed by Saudi Arabia in May, has been gaining momentum – with Fifa using former players, including Michael Owen and Yaya Toure, to offer their support while apparently conducting a feasibility study for the scheme. The proposal has the backing of Fifa president Gianni Infantino, who is close to the Saudis. On Friday, Arsène Wenger, the chief of global football development at Fifa, told L’Equipe he hoped a decision on the proposal would be taken in December.

However, Ceferin expressed bemusement that the proposals would go through with so little scrutiny or debate. “Considering the major impact this reform may have on the whole organisation of football there is widespread astonishment that Fifa appears to be launching a PR campaign to push its proposal whilst any such proposals haven’t been presented to confederations, national associations, leagues, clubs, players, coaches, clubs and all the football community,” he said.

Earlier Evain had written to Ceferin to say that fans’ groups were against the idea of a World Cup every two years. “If realized, the new schedule will have an adverse impact on the balance between local, domestic, continental, and international competitions,” Evain said. “This will likely undermine tournaments such as the Asian Cup, Africa Cup of Nations, Copa América, European Football Championship, Gold Cup, and Nations Cup, which hold just as much importance to match-going fans as the World Cup itself.”

Evain said he was working with fan groups from the other five soccer confederations to contest the Fifa proposals. “Most fans look forward to the World Cup precisely because it is a unique event that only occurs every four years,” he added. “They do not have an unlimited amount of time, money, or enthusiasm to expend on flights, accommodation, and tickets — or TV subscriptions.

“There is no doubt that football is in desperate need of reform ... as things stand, the game is unequal, expensive to watch, and for the millions who do not have access to adequate grassroots facilities, difficult to play. But doubling the number of World Cups will not solve any of these problems. In fact, it will inevitably make them worse.”