FIFA has revealed the regulations for the World Club Cup that will be held next summer in the United States.
The clubs participating in the revamped competition now know that it will be FIFA that will manage the commercial and audiovisual rights, although they have not yet revealed the amount that each team will receive.
Real Madrid are among the 32 teams that will be involved in the tournament which will now be a quadrennial event and will be played in the summer next year in the United States from June 15 to July 13.
With over six months left for the tournament, FIFA has defined and announced the rules pertaining to the squad and other aspects for clubs to follow.
Format
Like with the international World Cup format, the Club World Cup will also have 32 teams split into eight groups of four clubs.
The top two sides from each of the eight groups will progress to the Round of 16 stages with the knockout matches being only one-legged affairs unlike the home and away format used in the UEFA Champions League.
Furthermore, the best-performing player will also be awarded the Golden Ball.
Squad rules
The participating clubs will need to submit the final list of a minimum of 26 players and a maximum of 35 (of which at least three must be goalkeepers) to participate in the competition.
The provisional list will be made up of a minimum of 26 players and a maximum of 50 (of which at least four must be goalkeepers). However, only the 35 players listed in the final list will be able to participate in the competition, at most.
In accordance with Article 31 of these regulations, a maximum of 26 players (11 starters and a maximum of 15 substitutes) may be called up to play each match.
Clubs may make the following changes to the final list: a) clubs may replace players whose contract has naturally expired during the competition; b) clubs may add a maximum of two new players to the final list, which will not count towards the maximum of 35 players.
Injured or ill goalkeepers who are replaced will return their accreditation to FIFA and, consequently, will no longer be considered part of the final list.
No player may play for two different teams in the World Cup. Despite the ‘change’ of season mid-competition, the door is not opened to the change. Teams must arrive in the United States three days before the start of the tournament.
FIFA has given member associations the option to open an exceptional transfer window from June 1-10 to push through deals involving possible free agents to avoid confusion with players whose contracts expire mid-tournament (on June 30).
If two clubs wish to include the same player in their respective provisional rosters, the FIFA general secretariat will decide for which club the player can be included, after listening to all interested parties.
Team separation
When two or more teams in the same group have the same points after completing the first phase, the following criteria will be applied:
a) the greater number of points obtained in the group matches between the teams in question; b) the better goal difference in the group matches between the teams in question; the greater number of goals scored in the group matches between the teams in question.
If after applying criteria a) to c), the teams are still level, the criteria stipulated in points a) to c) will be applied to the matches of the remaining teams only to determine their final position.
Integrity
To guarantee the integrity of the competition, no club participating in the competition may, directly or indirectly, hold values or shares in any other club participating in the competition, or trade with them; be a member of another club participating in the competition; be involved in any way in the management, administration and results of any other club participating in the competition; have any kind of power in the management, administration and results of any other club participating in the competition.
Furthermore, the rules also stipulate that “by signing the participation agreement, the participating clubs commit to fielding the BEST possible XI in the competition matches.”
Source: Sky Sports and MARCA
