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European Club Association (ECA) chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has told Fussball Bild he fears "a revolution is inevitable" after FIFA's decision to expand the World Cup to 46 teams, suggesting clubs could withhold players for the 2026 tournament. Bayern Munich CEO Rummenigge heads up the ECA, which represents the biggest clubs on the continent and which has joined the German Football Association (DFB) and German Football League (DFL) in criticising FIFA's decision, which comes into effect in 2026. Rummenigge has now warned that the expansion -- which will see an increase in games even though tournaments are still set to take place over 32 days -- could lead to a clash between FIFA and the clubs who pay the players' wages amid concerns over injuries and burnout. "I back [DFL CEO] Christian Seifert who said that we face a revolution if we continue like that," Rummenigge said. "Fundamentally, I am no friend of revolutions because they usually end up bloody, but I fear that a revolution is inevitable." He added: "The big clubs and also the leagues might come to question whether they need FIFA and its odd decisions. At the end of the day, they are only burdening football and not serving football." The ECA and FIFA have an agreement in place on the release of players for national teams that is in place until 2022, and Rummenigge warned that the agreement might not be prolonged. "There is currently no agreement for the time after [2022], and this also affects the 2026 World Cup. Therefore, you have to see whether there'll be a solution for a future cooperation," he said.
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