Well, do you already have plans for summer 2027? Admittedly, it’s still a few months away. Exactly forty-two. But anyone who is employed as a professional footballer at a well-known club – Real Madrid, Manchester City, FC Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain – and is also booked as a national player for one of the more talented European or South American national teams can already look ahead to the summer months three and a half years. These are likely to be the first in which he could be entitled to a conventional break, i.e. more than one, two or three weeks without football in a row.
Before that, the summers look like this: 2024 European Championships and Copa América. 2026 World Cup. And in between, from June 15th to July 13th, 2025, as has been certain since Sunday, there will be the Club World Cup for 32 clubs for the first time. Or as the International Football Association calls the event: the Mundial de Clubes FIFA, from now on every four years. Thanks to Gianni Infantino’s FIFA, this means for professionals in the category described: After 2027, 2031 could be free again. But who wants to share part of the million-dollar salary – or is it called compensation for pain and suffering? – If you want to invest in the early bird discount for luxury holiday homes, be warned: the invention of further highly lucrative competitions can be expected at any time. The club’s invention of the Mundial does not mean that the mouth is full.
