Soccer union launches legal action against FIFA over fixture congestion

FIFA is facing a legal challenge over the world governing body’s “unilateral” decision to set the international match calendar – notably an expanded 32-team FIFA Club World Cup – unions representing soccer players said in a statement on Thursday.

FIFA is facing a legal challenge over the world governing body’s “unilateral” decision to set the international match calendar – notably an expanded 32-team FIFA Club World Cup – unions representing soccer players said in a statement on Thursday. The claim filed by the English Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) and the Union Nationale des Footballeurs Professionnels – the French player union – and supported by FIFPRO Europe, accuses FIFA of violating player’s rights and potentially EU competition law by creating a calendar that is “overloaded and unworkable.” According to FIFPRO Europe, FIFA has “failed to meaningfully engage or negotiate and have unilaterally continued a programme of competition expansion despite the opposition of player unions.” “Since all attempts at dialogue have failed, it is now up to us to ensure that the fundamental rights of players are fully respected by taking the matter to the European courts and thus to the European Court of Justice (ECJ),” said FIFPRO President David Terrier. “It’s not a question of stigmatising a particular competition, but of denouncing both the underlying problem and the straw that broke the camel’s back,” Terrier added. CNN has reached out to FIFA for comment on the legal action.