The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Aleksander Ceferin

  • Infantino’s plans for new global tournaments

    FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s plans for two new global tournaments are back on the agenda at the governing body with football officials set to discuss the proposals on Friday.

    FIFA’s ruling council meets in Kigali, Rwanda and Infantino’s plan for a new `mini World Cup’ and an expanded Club World Cup feature among the items for discussion.

    FIFA did not immediately respond to a request for comment and it was not clear if the plans would be put to a vote.

    Infantino wrote to FIFA Council members in May, outlining his plans which he says are backed by a “solid and serious’’ group of investors.

    He said the investors are willing to spend $25 billion over a 12-year cycle starting in 2021.

    The letter did not outline the identity of the investors but several media reports have stated that Japanese conglomerate SoftBank Group is heading the consortium.

    Read Also: Infantino’s interpretation of Things Fall Apart

    However, the plans were strongly opposed by clubs and leagues in Europe.

    UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said the plans were “highly cynical and ruthless mercantilism’’ and accused FIFA of selling the soul of the game.

    The plans did not feature on the agenda of FIFA’s congress in Moscow in June.

    Infantino’s proposals would bring about major changes to the international calendar.

    The proposals outline what would effectively be a mini-World Cup, featuring eight international teams, every two years in addition to the traditional event.

    The tournament, known as the “Final 8’’, will be the climax of a proposed global Nations League competition.

    In the May letter, it was suggested that the new tournament would take place every October and/or November of every odd year starting from 2021.

    The Confederations Cup, currently staged every four years in a year before the World Cup, would be abolished.

    The annual Club World Cup, which currently features seven teams, would be expanded to 24 teams and moved to once every four years, according to the proposals.

  • UEFA president ‘worried’ over use of VAR at World Cup

    UEFA President, Aleksander Ceferin has expressed concern over the decision to employ the video replay system ( VAR ) at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

    He also said the technology still needed more testing before it can be considered for use in the Champions League.

    World football governing body, FIFA voted in March to deploy VAR at the June-July tournament in Russia.

    It was only two weeks after its use was approved by IFAB, the organisation responsible for rule changes in the sport.

    “I have some fear for the World Cup, where we will have referees who have never officiated with the VAR,” Ceferin told Italian paper Gazzetta dello Sport in an interview.

    “I hope there are no scandals or problems,”

    Ceferin has already said that VAR would not be used in the Champions League next season.

    “The Champions League is like a Ferrari or a Porsche: you cannot drive it right away, you need training, offline testing. And everyone has to understand how it works,” he said.

    “It’s too early for VAR. That doesn’t mean we will never have it as the process is inevitable… We’ll have it one day in the Champions League but there’s no rush.”

    VAR is already being used in Serie A, the Bundesliga and Portugal’s Primeira Liga this season, among others.

    Read Also: Klopp predicts fiery UEFA Champions League clash against Manchester City

    IFAB insists it has reduced refereeing mistakes but critics say there has been confusion in a number of matches.

    Goals have been annulled several minutes after being scored — with the teams waiting to restart — and penalties revoked with the ball on the spot.

    Another criticism is that the spectators are not kept informed of what is happening when a decision is reviewed.

    Ceferin said that VAR would not have made any difference in last week’s Champions League quarter-final between Real Madrid and Juventus, where a soft stoppage-time penalty led to the Spanish side advancing 4-3 on aggregate.

    “What would have changed with VAR? Nothing. There are those who have watched it 20 times, I’ve watched it 50, but for half the people it’s a penalty and for the other half, it isn’t.”

    NAN

  • World Cup 2026: FIFA reveals allocation for 48-team tournament

    World Cup 2026: FIFA reveals allocation for 48-team tournament

    FIFA is proposing a six-nation play-off tournament to decide the last two slots at the 48-team World Cup in 2026.

    Football’s world governing body has revealed its plans for how the 48 places will be allocated, with 16 European teams set to qualify.

    The proposals — approved by FIFA’s president and his counterparts at the six confederations — are expected to be ratified by the FIFA Council on May 9.

    FIFA members voted in January to expand the World Cup from 32 to 48 teams.

    UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said he was “satisfied’’ with the proposals and that European nations would be “fairly represented’’.

    All six confederations will have at least one team in the expanded tournament, with no inter-confederation play-offs prior to the play-off tournament.

    The World Cup hosts will still qualify automatically, with their slot taken from their confederation’s quota.

    The recommended places for each confederation are:

    • Africa – 9 (up from 5)
    • Asia – 8 (up from 4 or 5)
    • Europe – 16 (up from 13)
    • North, Central America and Caribbean – 6 (up from 3 or 4)
    • Oceania – 1 (from 0 or 1)
    • South America – 6 (up from 4 or 5)

    Should the proposals be ratified, as expected, it will consist of one team from each confederation except UEFA, with the final team taken from the confederation of the host country.

    Two teams will be seeded based on their FIFA ranking.

    They will then face the winners of two knockout games involving the four unseeded teams, with the prize a place in the World Cup.

    The play-off will be played in the World Cup’s host country, with November 2025 suggested as a possible date for the 2026 qualifying play-off.

    It will also double as a test event for the main tournament.(NAN)

  • Slovenia’s Ceferin elected new UEFA president

    Slovenia’s Ceferin elected new UEFA president

    Aleksander Ceferin has been elected as the new president of the European football’s governing body, UEFA.

    Ceferin, head of the Football Association of Slovenia, polled 42 votes at UEFA’s congress in Athens, 29 more than Dutchman Michael van Praag, the BBC reports.

    The 48-year-old succeeds former France international Michel Platini, who resigned after being banned from all football activity last year.

    Ceferin will take on the remainder of Platini’s term of office, until 2019.

    “It is a great honour, but also a great responsibility,” the BBC quoted the Slovenian as saying after his emergence as UEFA chief.

    “It means a lot to me. My small and beautiful Slovenia is very proud of it, and I hope that one day you will also be proud of me.”

    Ceferin has a background in law and has been president of the Slovenian FA since 2011.

    England’s Football Association last week declared its support for Van Praag, who – unlike Ceferin – is a member of the UEFA’s executive committee.

    The Scottish Football Association said it would vote for the Slovenian.

    Van Praag said: “Aleksander and I have the same goal. We want a different UEFA, we want a better UEFA. But he wanted to do it his way and I wanted to do it my way.”