‘Man City to snub phenomenal £77.5m payout’ this summer
Man City and Chelsea will be England’s representatives at this summer’s money-spinning Club World Cup in the United States.
The 32-team competition, which will take place across 12 venues in 11 host cities, will start on 15 June and end on 13 July.
Fifa has confirmed there will be a £780million prize pot for the Club World Cup, with the winner likely to earn around £77.5million.
When asked about the tournament, Man City boss Pep Guardiola said: “We’re going to try to enjoy that experience. After 11 months being there, I don’t think about bringing the players 24 hours in the room thinking about the next game. We’re going to training, but I want to let them free.”
Everton’s former chief Keith Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – has shared his verdict on how seriously City will take the competition this summer.
Man City could make strategic exit at Club World Cup, says Wyness
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, Wyness insisted City may be tempted to bank the prize money from making a strategic exit in the “early rounds”.
The final, which will be held at MetLife Stadium, is scheduled for 13 July – almost 12 months after Guardiola‘s side played their first pre-season game of the 2024-25 campaign.
Wyness insisted he expects South American sides to “push hard” for success but insisted the tournament is at the “wrong time” for Europe.
He told Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “It’s huge money. The prize money at the Club World Cup – Fifa have been talking about £1billion.
“It’s phenomenal, the money they have put in.
“However – this is a political power play from Fifa to try and take over more of the football calendar.
“Will the players really be in the right state of mind and fitness for this competition?
“Psychologically, it comes at the wrong time for a lot of the European teams.
“No matter what anyone says, these players go through the mill in terms of stresses on their body and mind.
| Chelsea (ENG) | Bayern Munich (GER) | Porto (POR) | Juventus (ITA) |
| Man City (ENG) | Paris Saint-Germain (FRA) | Benfica (POR) | Atletico Madrid (ESP) |
| Real Madrid (ESP) | Inter Milan (ITA) | Borussia Dortmund (GER) | Red Bull Salzburg (AUT) |
“Clubs may have one eye on the prize money but the problem may be is that they are happy to accept the lesser prize.
“The prize for the early rounds is also sizeable, so there may not be a real need to win the competition.
“Some of the other clubs from other countries may have a different attitude, because they’ve got no chance of making anywhere near the same money in their own competitions.
“I think you may see the South American sides pushing hard, but I don’t think Man City and Chelsea will be fielding first-XI squads.
“They’ll be top-level sides, but they will rest and rotate. The Club World Cup still has issues, and it still has to prove itself.
“Fifa are pushing hard but I don’t think we will see top-level performance just yet.”
Man City to accept cut-price Grealish bid
Football Insider revealed on Tuesday (11 March) that Man City will accept an offer for fringe star Jack Grealish in the upcoming transfer window if their reduced asking price is met.
It is believed the England international, 29, is unhappy with his role at the Etihad Stadium – almost four years on from his £100million move from Aston Villa.
Football Insider revealed (3 March) that Ederson, 31, also has a “strong possibility” of leaving Man City in the off-season.
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