FIFA’s new club tournament in danger after Apple rights negotiations stall

The Apple deal for the new FIFA club tournament is said to be worth $1 billion, a quarter of the amount demanded by FIFA, as critics believe the tournament would put too much pressure on players.

David Hellier and Giles Turner for Bloomberg News:
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The new FIFA world club tournament has hit another hurdle: clubs are resisting reduced financial incentives and continue to struggle to find a broadcaster, people familiar with the matter say.

The new competition, which is set to be held in the United States next summer to create some excitement ahead of the 2026 World Cup, will see 32 clubs from around the world compete in a World Cup-style tournament.

FIFA negotiated with Apple Inc. earlier this year for global television rights that would help participating teams pay their fees, the people said. But talks have stalled and FIFA is now considering selling the rights to the tournament to regional broadcasters, added the people, who asked not to be identified because they had confidential information.

A FIFA representative said there were “many” parties interested in media and commercial partnerships and that they were working daily to maximise opportunities for all involved.

“FIFA is absolutely confident of the commercial and sporting success of the new competition,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “FIFA is in regular and productive dialogue with the key parties involved, including potential host cities, media and commercial partners and, of course, the clubs themselves.”

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MacDailyNews Opinion: Hopefully Apple can still get a piece of the pie.

Maybe Cook should consider bidding for NFL Sunday Ticket and winning it from Direct TV by buying rights to Premiere League and La Liga games etc and making them exclusive to Apple TV. Go straight to the sports leagues with tons of money. – MacDailyNews, May 6, 2014
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