China to host expanded Club World Cup in 2021
China will host the first edition of the new, expanded 24-team Club World Cup in 2021, FIFA president Gianni Infantino told reporters on Thursday following a meeting of the global soccer body's decision-making council in Shanghai.
Infantino said the competition would take place in June-July of that year. He did not give a precise breakdown but said the competition will feature eight teams from Europe, one from China, one from Oceania and three each from the other continental confederations.
The criteria for selecting the teams would be decided in the next few weeks, he said.
Infantino also announced that the hosts for the 2030 World Cup would be chosen at the FIFA Congress in 2024 and that the global soccer body intended to invest $1 billion in women's football over the next four years.
"It is a historic decision for football," Infantino said of the decision to choose China for the new-look competition, adding there were no other candidates.
"The new (tournament) will be a competition which anyone who loves football is looking forward to. It is the first real and true (Club) World Cup where the best clubs will compete," he added.
"It will allow us to generate significant revenues but I want to underline this, very, very clearly .....FIFA will have zero out of this because we will reinvest this in football."
The Club World Cup currently consists of seven teams and is held every December. Qatar will stage the final two editions, including the one this year.
