2021 FIFA Club World Cup to move due to rescheduled Euro 2020

Liam Watson
The inaugural 24-team FIFA Club World Cup originally for next year is set to move to accommodate the rescheduled UEFA 2020 European Championship and CONMEBOL 2020 Copa America national team competitions.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino arranged a conference call taking place on Wednesday where he will recommend that the global governing body’s Bureau of the Council accept the postponement of the two continental tournaments and move the expanded 2021 Club World Cup.

The expanded club tournament was meant to take place across eight cities in China from 17th June to 4th July next year in the calendar slot traditionally reserved for the FIFA Confederations Cup national team tournament.

However, UEFA and CONMEBOL, the respective continental confederations for Europe and South America, announced on Tuesday that their flagship national team tournaments would be postponed for a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, that created a clash with the 2021 Club World Cup.

FIFA will now wait until ‘there is more clarity on the situation’ to decide new dates for the Club World Cup, which Infantino said could take place later in 2021, in 2022 or even 2023.

Infantino, 49, also plans to arrange discussions with the Chinese Football Association (CFA), the national soccer body, and the Chinese government to ‘minimise any negative impact’ of a postponement.

In addition, FIFA will recommend that the ruling council make a AU$17.5 million to the World Health Organisation Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund, while Infantino says the Zurich-based governing body will also discuss establishing a Global Football Assistance Fund to ‘help members of the football community affected by this crisis’.

‘The world is facing an unprecedented health challenge and clearly a global and collective response is needed,’ Infantino said in a statement.

‘Cooperation, mutual respect and understanding must be the guiding principles for all decision makers to have in mind at this crucial moment in time.

‘Particularly in football, finding appropriate and fair solutions at global level is imperative. This requires unity, solidarity and a shared sense of responsibility and we need to think of all those around the world potentially impacted by our decisions.

‘Finally, it goes without saying that FIFA will keep in regular contact with all members of the football community during this difficult period.

‘As I stated yesterday, challenging circumstances offer the opportunity for people to come together, show what they can do in a collective spirit, and emerge stronger and better prepared for the future. And this is what FIFA is aiming to do here.’

Infantino’s plans to push ahead with an expanded Club World Cup have previously created tension between FIFA and UEFA given the threat the reimagined tournament could impact the value of the UEFA Champions League.

However, those differences appear to have been put to one side as the global soccer industry attempts to implement a unified response to the coronavirus outbreak.

UEFA’s decision to postpone Euro 2020, along with the Copa America due to begin on 12th June, was taken to free up more time for Europe’s domestic soccer leagues to complete their current seasons, the majority of which have now been put on hold.

The move could yet have implications for the UEFA 2021 Women’s European Championship, which is due to get underway on 7th July next year, four days before the new date for the final of the men’s competition.

UEFA is yet to confirm the fate of the tournament, although the governing body’s president Aleksander Čeferin told the Associated Press that postponing the tournament until 2022 is “one of the possibilities” and “one of the most likely to happen”.

“We are thinking of postponing this Women’s Euro as well and Under-21 championship as well,” he said.

“We will have to postpone both because I don’t think that we should cannibalise the women’s Euro with the men’s Euro just one month before.”

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The Man Who Built a Women’s Football Program from Nothing is now an Award-Winning Gender Equity Leader

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Image Credit: Football Victoria

Eight years ago, Spring Hills Football Club did not have a girls’ team. Today it has one of the most recognised women’s programs in Melbourne’s west, a senior NPLW side, and a head coach who has just been named Gender Equity Leader of the Year at the Melton City Council Volunteer Achievement Awards.

Tom Markovski, Spring Hills’ NPLW Head Coach, received the award at a ceremony coinciding with National Volunteer Week, recognised for his community leadership, promotion of gender equality and commitment to advancing the status of women and people of all genders in sport. The recognition comes from outside the football community entirely, awarded by a local council celebrating volunteers across every sector of civic life in one of Melbourne’s fastest-growing regions.

Building from scratch

When Markovski arrived at Spring Hills, women’s football at the club did not exist. His first act was to champion the establishment of the club’s first all-girls team, a process that required persuading a club culture built around men’s football that the investment was worth making.

Women’s football in community clubs has historically struggled to access the same facilities, scheduling priority, coaching resources and institutional support as the men’s game. Clubs have been slow to invest in programs whose return is less immediately visible than a senior men’s premiership, and in a growing outer-suburban community like Melton, where volunteer capacity is finite and demand across every program is high, the case for building something new always has to compete with the urgency of maintaining what already exists.

Markovski made the case anyway, and kept making it across eight years of coaching senior and junior NPL teams while simultaneously building the structural foundations of a women’s program designed to outlast any individual’s involvement. The club’s first all-girls team became multiple junior girls teams. Those junior teams created the pipeline for a senior women’s side. The senior women’s side created visible pathways for younger players to see where the game could take them within their own club.

The outcome is a program that Spring Hills now holds up as central to its identity rather than supplementary to it. The club has become a leader in female participation in Melbourne’s west, and recently made history within the NPLW Victoria structure by fielding junior teams coached entirely by female coaches, a milestone that reflects the depth of the program Markovski helped build.

What the Award Recognises

The Melton City Council’s decision to name Markovski its Gender Equity Leader of the Year places his work in a frame that extends beyond football. Melton is one of the fastest-growing local government areas in Australia, a diverse and rapidly expanding community where the institutions that bring people together, like schools, councils, sporting clubs, carry an outsized responsibility for social cohesion.

Mayor Cr. Lara Carli, speaking at the awards ceremony, reflected on the role volunteers play in communities like Melton’s. “Volunteering creates friendships, strengthens communities and builds a sense of belonging,” she said. “It helps people feel connected, supported and valued, and those things are more important than ever in a growing and diverse community like ours.”

For the girls now playing football at Spring Hills who were not playing anywhere eight years ago, Markovski’s contribution is not abstract. It is the specific and concrete fact of having somewhere to play, someone to coach them, and a pathway that leads somewhere.

Aussie partners with two A-League clubs in cross-state alliance

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Image credit: Melbourne Victory

Australia’s largest retail mortgage broker will team up with Melbourne Victory and Western Sydney Wanderers, representing Aussie’s commitment to supporting and connecting people through football.

 

Opposing teams, United partners

The alliance between Aussie, Melbourne Victory and Western Sydney Wanderers reflects a unique approach to investing in Australia’s football landscape.

It encompasses both communities and supporters across Melbourne and Sydney, with Aussie’s presence in both cities now firmly embedded into local, grassroots networks.

“We’re excited about this partnership because it represents much more than a traditional sponsorship,” explained Aussie National Manager, Strategic Partnerships, Ryan Ferguson via press release.

“It’s about connection, community, and being part of something that reaches people in a meaningful and authentic way.”

Both Melbourne Victory and Western Sydney Wanderers also commented on the unique nature of the partnership.

“The joint venture is a game-changer in how brands and sports teams can collaborate beyond the traditional instruments of a partnership and stands apart from the existing relationships in our sporting landscape for the betterment of our stakeholders,” said Melbourne Victory Managing Director, Caroline Carnegie.

“For the first time, two iconic clubs are coming together in a joint-venture sponsorship that delivers unmatched reach, community impact and business innovation,” added Western Sydney Wanderers CEO, Scott Hudson.

 

National stage, local commitment

As Australians grapple with soaring property prices and financial uncertainty, having access to a platform like Aussie is immensely valuable.

So now that Aussie will begins its venture alongside Melbourne Victory and Western Sydney Wanderers – two clubs with extensive fanbases – it now has the means to make real, local impact.

Two major cities. Two footballing identities. All aligned under the same vision for community reach, growth and innovation.

“Aussie is a national brand, but at our heart, we are built on local relationships,” continued Ferguson.

“Every day, our brokers are working with customers in their communities, helping them navigate the journey of finding, buying and owning their own home. That’s why this partnership feels like such a natural fit.”

Ultimately, while the alliance will build on the business and community networks of the two A-League outfits, the impact will extend far beyond the boundaries of the pitch.

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