No World Cup compensation for European clubs: FIFA

DOHA: FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke on Wednesday ruled out any prospect of Europe’s football clubs receiving financial compensation for the 2022 World Cup being moved to November-December.
“There will be no compensation. There are seven years to reorganise,” a bullish Valcke told a Doha press conference. “We are in agreement with the clubs.”
European associations representing major clubs from England, Germany and France have already expressed their unhappiness with the switch recommended by a FIFA task force meeting in Qatar on Tuesday, amid speculation that some would seek financial redress for the decision.
The task force made a provisional recommendation for the tournament to start on November 26 and end on December 23, 2022, ensuring an enforced break for the domestic European leagues.
Valcke said European clubs should accept the potential switch.
“It’s not perfect we know that but why are you talking about compensation? Again, it’s happening once and we are doing nothing which destroys football. We are just changing the format and the structure of a season,” he told journalists packed into a ballroom at Doha’s Ritz/Carlton hotel.
Valcke added that FIFA had no reason to say sorry to Europe’s biggest clubs. “Why should we apologise to the clubs? We have had an agreement with the clubs that they are part of the beneficiaries. It was $40 million in 2010 and $70 million in 2014.”
A final decision will be made by the FIFA executive committee at a meeting in Zurich, Switzerland, on March 19-20. EPL boss Richard Scudamore admitted after Tuesday’s decision that he was “very disappointed” by the switch.