MANCHESTER CITY’S Champions League triumph has ensured that one of their domestic rivals has missed out a potential £150m.
The Premier League champions defeated Manchester United 2-1 in the FA Cup Final at Wembley a fortnight ago to seal the Double.
Man City’s Champions League triumph spells bad news for one of their rivals
Then Pep Guardiola’s men beat Inter Milan to win the Champions League last week to claim the Treble and their place in history.
That result means that City have secured a place in Fifa’s new money-spinning 32-team Club World Cup tournament, which is scheduled to kick-off in the summer of 2025.
And the prize money is expected to be in the region of around £150m.
Chelsea, who were European champions two years ago, and last season’s winners Real Madrid have also qualified.
While Manchester United, Arsenal or Newcastle could also find themselves there if they go on to claim Champions League glory next term.
However, six-time Euro kings Liverpool are set to miss out, according to The Mirror.
The Reds currently lie fourth in the Uefa rankings and will be in the Europa League next season due to their fifth-place finish in the Premier League.
Fifa president Gianni Infantino announced the expansion plans for the Club World Cup in January.
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The current format still has seven teams from six confederations across the globe compete in the annual knock-out tournament.
So that means City will travel to Saudi Arabia in December looking to add another crown to their historic treble.
But the revamped tournament is set to be staged every four years – despite opposition to Fifa’s proposal.
A number of Uefa and European Clubs Association members believe it will be a negative on the Champions League.
The ECA refused to sign a memorandum of understanding when Infantino met with them back in December but the cash incentive on offer has eased some of the reservations.
The original idea of the new tournament was to have it staged in the USA in the summer of 2025.
There are due to be eight groups of four teams competing with the top two in each qualifying for the ‘finals’ which would then lead to a straight knock-out tournament that would be played before the start of the 2026-27 season.
In addition to the 12 European teams, the tournament is also planned to include six teams from CONMEBOL, four CONCACAF Champions League winners, four CAF Champions League winners and the highest ranked club of four Champions League winners from OFC as well as a team from the host country.
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