Following nearly a month in which “football reinforced its unique cohesive power by uniting the world in a spirit of peace and friendship,” the FIFA Council met yesterday in advance of the FIFA World Cup final in Doha, Qatar, which FIFA President Gianni Infantino hailed as the “best ever,” and adopted a number of crucial decisions for the future of football.
The FIFA Council approved the budget for the 2023–2026 cycle, which will see revenue of $11bn, of which a significantly increased proportion will be allocated to football investment, amounting to $9.7bn. This approval came along with the confirmation that FIFA’s revenue at year’s end would stand at $7.5bn—$1bn more than budgeted.
In relation to the Talent Development Scheme (TDS) which is led by Arsène Wenger, Chief of Global Football Development, the FIFA Council approved a dedicated funding allocation of $200m to cover the 2023-2026 operational life cycle of this ground-breaking initiative, which aims to create a sustainable legacy for long-term player development by helping each member association (MA) reach its full potential and ultimately give every talent a chance.
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The allocation of funds to the MAs participating in the TDS will follow a tailor-made approach that will take into consideration their specific needs. These MAs will also benefit from extra solidarity funding, subject to specific criteria. Any TDS funds not allocated by 31 December 2026 will automatically be transferred to the Football Development Fund to provide indefinite and exclusive support to FIFA Forward 3.0 beneficiaries.
International match calendar principles and competitions endorsed
Several key strategic principles related to the international match calendars and competitions for both men’s and women’s football were endorsed to the FIFA Council.
For men’s football, an expanded 32-team FIFA Club World Cup is set to begin in June 2025 (following the postponement of the original 24-team tournament planned for 2021) and will take place every four years. The windows for the international match calendar as of 2025 would include one extended window with four matches in late September and early October to replace the current two separate windows in September and October, with the other windows (November, March and June) unchanged. In order to increase the possibilities for teams from different confederations to play each other, FIFA would launch friendly tournaments – “FIFA World Series” – which would take place in the March window in even years. The decision for the FIFA World Cup 2030 host will also be made in 2024, with the bid regulations to be published early next year.
For women’s football, the current international match calendar structure will remain unchanged until 2025, with the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027 and 2031 hosts to be decided in 2024 and 2025 respectively. The creation of a new FIFA Women’s Club World Cup, a new FIFA Futsal Women’s World Cup and the expansion of the Olympic Games Women’s tournament from 12 to 16 teams have also been endorsed.
The principles also include proposals to revise FIFA’s youth tournament inventory – including expanded annual Under-17 tournaments, both for boys and girls.
In establishing the details of the new international match calendars, due consideration shall be given to the players’ health and well-being as a primary goal. All of the above key strategic principles will be detailed in consultation with the relevant stakeholders in the coming months.
Morocco, United Arab Emirates and Seychelles to host FIFA tournaments
The FIFA Council also appointed the Moroccan Football Association as the host for the FIFA Club World Cup 2022, which will take place from 1 to 11 February 2023. It also confirmed that the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2023 will be hosted by the United Arab Emirates Football Association and the 2025 edition by the Seychelles Football Federation.
FIFA Football Agent Regulations approved
The FIFA Council took a major step towards the establishment of a fairer and more transparent football transfer system by approving the FIFA Football Agent Regulations, which seek to introduce basic service standards for football agents and their clients, including a mandatory licensing system, the prohibition of multiple representation to avoid conflicts of interest and the introduction of a cap on commissions, whose objective is to reinforce contractual stability, protect the integrity of the transfer system and achieve greater financial transparency.
Amendments to FIFA Code of Ethics and Disciplinary Code
The FIFA Council also decided to amend the FIFA Code of Ethics in order to ensure that going forward, all forms of sexual abuse, harassment, and exploitation are not subject to a statute of limitations for prosecution as part of FIFA’s zero-tolerance policy against all forms of gender-based and other forms of violence.
Additionally, significant changes were made to the FIFA Disciplinary Code to strengthen FIFA’s fight against match-fixing, increase protection for discrimination victims, entrust independent integrity experts with the investigation of particular disciplinary matters, and broaden the remit of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee’s authority.
