Kieran Maguire issues ‘major’ Man City claim as Fifa plan threatens Sheikh Mansour & co.
Fifa’s plan to revamp the Club World Cup could threaten the validity of Man City’s multi-club network if teams from City Football Group have to face each other.
That is the opinion of finance expert Kieran Maguire, who spoke exclusively to Football Insider about the growing concerns around multi-club ownership in football.
City is the mothership of multi-club network City Football Group (CFG), who expanded their ownership to 12 clubs in July 2022 by acquiring a majority stake in Italian club Palermo.
CFG now owns teams in four separate continents, all of which will be competing in Fifa’s Club World Cup.
Fifa president Gianni Infantino revealed plans in December to revamp and expand the tournament to 32 teams starting in 2025.
Maguire believes Fifa’s new Club World Cup plans will be a “major concern” for Man City and CFG, as their network’s validity will be questioned if their teams face each other in the competition.
“Uefa’s stance on multi-club ownership is a cause for concern for Man City.
“Uefa are also sending a warning shot for any potential owners who want to acquire significant stakes in individual clubs across Europe who could play each other in Uefa competitions going forward.
“But the major concern for Man City comes from Fifa, who want an expanded World Club Cup which includes clubs from different continents.
“Fifa will want that competition to be taken seriously and that won’t be the case if clubs from multi-club networks end up playing each other in this money-making grab from Fifa.“
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