Liverpool denied chance of £150m payday thanks to Man City’s Champions League success

Manchester City have another chance to clinch more money after a historic treble but make sure Liverpool miss what could be a big payday

Manchester City’s Champions League triumph means six-time EURO kings Liverpool will miss out on their first scheduled 32-team Club World Cup.

City have secured a place in the FIFA-winning tournament, set to start in the summer of 2025, after beating Inter Milan in Istanbul last week.

And with a prize money set to be around £150m, the Blues would have a chance to add significantly to the incredible £294m they raised for winning the treble. Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup.

2021 European champions Chelsea and 2022 winners Real Madrid have also qualified. Manchester United, Arsenal or Newcastle could expand the Premier League contingent by winning the Champions League next season.

But Liverpool’s failure to finish in the top four means they will miss out on the prestige of taking on the best clubs in the world at a game-changing event.

FIFA have drawn up plans to allocate qualification places to the four Champions League winners from 2021 to 2024.

Eight other places are allocated to European clubs according to their UEFA coefficient.

However, places in the tournament are limited to just two per country – unless a country has had three different Champions League winners in the last four years.

This means standout names like Barcelona, ​​Bayern Munich, Juventus, PSG, Atletico Madrid and Borussia Dortmund can still qualify through the backdoor, either by winning the Champions League next season or by increasing their quota by reaching the raise finals.

Liverpool are currently fourth in the UEFA table but will play in the Europa League next season after finishing fifth in the Premier League.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino announced plans for the expansion of the FIFA Club World Cup in January.
Under the current format, seven teams from six confederations from around the world compete in an annual single-elimination tournament.

City trip to Saudi Arabia in December in hopes of adding a world title to their historic hat-trick.

The renewed tournament will be held every four years. But there is opposition to FIFA’s proposal.

Some members of UEFA and the influential European Clubs Association see it as an attack on the Champions League’s status as the world’s most prestigious club competition.

ECA, which represents 220 of Europe’s most powerful clubs, refused to sign a memorandum of understanding when Infantino met them at the World Cup in Qatar.

The Premier League is also said to have expressed concerns over the tournament, while La Liga has threatened legal action to block it.

But the money on offer should ease many bookings after Real Madrid were paid just £4m for winning their last Club World Cup in February.

FIFA has also changed the tournament schedule to allay concerns expressed by players’ union FIFPRO that the increasing demands placed on their members will lead to injury, fatigue and burnout.

The original idea was to hold the tournament entirely in the United States in the summer of 2025. It was seen as the perfect test event for a country that will host the World Cup alongside Canada and Mexico in the summer. following.

An alternate plan sees eight groups of four teams face off in the summer of 2025, with the top two advancing to the “final”.

A knockout tournament would then be played before the start of the 2026/27 season.

Besides 12 European teams, six CONMEBOL teams would also take part in the tournament, including four Copa Libertadores winners, four CONCACAF Champions League winners, four CAF Champions League winners, the highest ranked club four OFC Champions League winners and one host country association.