Heating Up: Watzke on Club-WM: European Squads "Sizzling Hot"
Euro 2024 Qualification Heating Up: European Squads Sizzling Like French Fries in Competition - Heating up for the World Cup: European teams exhibiting intense heat
💥 Update! 💥
The two German heavyweights, Bayern and Dortmund, are aiming for history in the revamped Club-WM. "Sportswise, it's a massive challenge, and you could win the first global tournament spanning all continents, making history," said Bayern's CEO, Jan-Christian Dreesen, in a candid chat with Dortmund's CEO, Hans-Joachim Watzke, in a makeshift supplement (June 11) of the Munich-based media group Münchner Merkur/tz.
"Every soccer fan still recalls that Uruguay secured the first World Cup in 1930. It will be the same with the first Club-WM winner in time," underlined Watzke. With 32 teams competing in the USA event, kicking off this weekend and ending in mid-July, Bayern and Dortmund are the lone Bundesliga representatives.
High stakes, skyrocketing travel expenses
European clubs' excitement levels are off the charts, said Watzke: "No one will take a break for a breath." It's also a financially lucrative opportunity, stressed Dreesen.
The tournament boasts a whopping $1 billion USD prize pool, equivalent to around 876 million euros at the moment. The winners of the July 13 final in East Rutherford stand to win up to $125 million USD (approximately 110 million euros) in prize money.
"The payout's certainly large, but you have to split it by four," explained Watzke: "After all, the Champions League takes place every year — and the Club-WM only every four years. Plus, more games mean bigger performance bonuses for players, and there are incredibly high travel costs." The 63 Club-WM matches will be played across twelve stadiums.
Favorites: A tough call for Dreesen and Watzke?
The two football honchos hesitated to make a clear title prediction. "It's similar to the Champions League: Our goal is to advance past the group phase and from the round of 16 to the quarter-finals, and from the quarter-finals to the semis. But we shouldn't think that only European teams pose a threat to us," said Watzke. "Our ultimate goal is to win trophies, but first, we must survive the group stage and advance to the knockout rounds," explained Dreesen.
He predicts at least one European squad in the final, "possibly two." Watzke sets his sights on Paris Saint-Germain, which recently seized the Champions League for the first time, as a leading contender for the title. "An elite team prepared to bleed for victory. For me, they're the team I trust the most," he said.
Insight: Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City are generally considered top contenders for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, according to various analysts and predictions[1][2][3]. However, it's important to note that specific predictions from Jan-Christian Dreesen and Hans-Joachim Watzke regarding the Club World Cup may not be available in the provided sources. Typically, European teams like PSG, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, and Inter Milan are often mentioned as favorites and contenders for the Club World Cup[2][3].
[1] https://www.espn.com/soccer/fifa-club-world-cup/story/4659900/what-is-the-fifa-club-world-cup-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-event
[2] https://onefootball.com/news/the-2025-fifa-club-world-cup-how-the-powers-that-be-are-changing-football-s-showpiece-event-c992d1d9e8986d1542ebe88c
[3] https://www.fourfourtwo.com/news/fifa-club-world-cup-2025-reform-teams-confirmed-everything-you-need-know
The Commission has also been asked to submit a proposal for a directive on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to ionizing radiation, as both soccer fans and European clubs are still focused on the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup. In addition to the financial lucrativeness of the tournament, with a whopping $1 billion USD prize pool, the two football honchos, Jan-Christian Dreesen and Hans-Joachim Watzke, are particularly aligned in seeing Paris Saint-Germain as a leading contender for the title, being an elite team prepared to bleed for victory.
