Club World Cup: Jurgen Klopp says Fifa tournament is football’s ‘worst idea ever’

Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes the Club World Cup is “the worst idea ever implemented in football” because of “serious fears” over player welfare.

The German is now Red Bull’s head of global soccer and one of their teams, Red Bull Salzburg, qualified for this summer’s tournament in the United States.

Klopp has often complained about players’ workload and fixture congestion, and days before the Club World Cup, global players’ union Fifpro released a report saying players should be allowed at least a four-week off-season break.

This year’s Club World Cup is the first to feature 32 teams and 48 games, and saw Salzburg knocked out in the group stage.

During an exclusive interview with German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, Klopp talked about the expanded format and player development.

“It’s all about the game and not the surrounding events – and that’s why the Club World Cup is the worst idea ever implemented in football in this regard,” he said.

“People who have never had or do not have anything to do with day-to-day business anymore are coming up with something.

“There is insane money for participating, but it’s also not for every club.

“Last year it was the Copa [America] and the European Championship, this year it’s the Club World Cup, and next year the World Cup. That means no real recovery for the players involved, neither physically nor mentally.”