Confed. Cup......Power Struggle to Control Soccer?

[Canuck in Boston]

Interesting take on the Confed. Cup from todays Boston Globe

http://www.boston.com/sports/soccer/articles/2005/06/28/fifa_europes_rich_clubs_stage_a_pitch_battle/

FIFA, Europe's rich clubs stage a pitch battle

By Frank Dell'Apa, Globe Staff | June 28, 2005

Argentina and Brazil have sent teams a long way to prove, so far, what is already well-known -- that they produce some of the best players on the planet at the junior and senior levels of soccer.

The Argentines and Brazilians will confront each other in both the Confederations Cup final in Germany and World Youth Championship semifinal in The Netherlands this week. It seems unfortunate the tournaments are being held simultaneously, but the timing does confirm the extraordinary ability of both countries to field strong national teams while competing in the Copa Libertadores and domestic leagues.

The fact that the other two World Youth Championship semifinalists are African (Morocco and Nigeria) also affirms that European clubs will continue to recruit talent from the Southern Hemisphere. The tournament has showcased players with great potential from every continent, but the African and Latin teams are distinguished by the players' spontaneous and uninhibited style, and these are the qualities European teams are willing to pay millions for.

The Confederations Cup is planned as a preview of the World Cup, and it will be an important test for South Africa in 2009. But tomorrow's final leaves many players only two weeks off before the start of club camps in a World Cup year.

AC Milan reports to camp July 14. Many Milan players were simply exhausted by the end of last season, and even the club's attempts to rest them for the May 29 Champions League final did not provide enough recovery time. Players such as Adriano, who performed for Inter in the Coppa Italia final June 12, and Milan's Kaká went from their clubs immediately into national team camps.

So, why has FIFA concocted the Confederations Cup? Though it is presented as a dry run for the World Cup, the Confederations Cup also serves as a muscle-flexing exercise for FIFA in the fight with Europe's rich clubs for control of the game. Some of the loudest complaints about the event's timing have come from Brazil and Mexico, since teams such as Santos (Leo and Robinho) and Chivas (Ramon Morales and Oswaldo Sanchez) have lost key players for Copa Libertadores matches. FIFA president Sepp Blatter made it clear to Chivas and Santos that the June 15-29 time frame was reserved for national team games, but his real battle is with Europe's so-called G14, the group of super clubs that has no less an ambition than to displace FIFA.

The G14 clubs note that they -- not the national teams -- pay player salaries and are seeking compensation and the right to dictate when and where their players can be released for international duty. This seems to make sense, but if the G14 clubs (which include Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Juventus, Manchester United, Milan, and Real Madrid) ever do take over, you can say goodbye not only to extraneous events such as the Confederations Cup, but also to the Copa America and the World Cup itself.

The Confederations Cup is just another way for Blatter to prove that FIFA still calls the shots. Unfortunately, the players pay a high physical price and the quality of the game is adversely affected.

Yet, the resiliency of Argentina and Brazil seems to be at least a partial solution to the overloaded schedule.

Last month, Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira called his team's visit to Buenos Aires ''a glorified friendly match," and Argentina used that as motivation for a 3-1 victory to clinch a berth in the 2006 finals in Germany. Now, Parreira is being more selective in his statements.

"Friendlies don't exist among national teams at this level, especially in a final," Parreira said yesterday. "Brazil had just beaten Paraguay and was very close to qualifying, similar to Argentina. I used that expression to lessen the pressure but, within the team, the theme was different."

The abundance of talent is symbolized by Argentina striker Luciano Figueroa, who has scored four goals, including the tying score against Mexico in a penalty-kick victory in the Confederation Cup semifinals in Hannover Sunday, and Brazil's Robson De Souza, better known as Robinho, who turned 21 in January, meaning he is barely too old to qualify for the World Youth Championship.

Figueroa is in the Argentina lineup only because Hernan Crespo is taking a break. Figueroa seldom performed for Villareal last season, unable to break into the Spanish club's lineup ahead of starting strikers Diego Forlan and Jose Mari.

Santos has been offered $19.5 million for Robinho, who has been nicknamed Pelesinho (''Little Pelé") by Real Madrid. But Arsenal has escalated a bidding war for Robinho, offering $26.8 million.

''I saw his touch on the ball and I was really moved, because I saw myself in him," said Pelé, who brought Robinho to his former club, Santos.

[argh1]

Well, ya know the ole club vs country thing ain't new and will continue for awhile.

But I sometimes wish that the other two world (?) sports that I follow, baseball and hockey (yes I know soccer is the one and only true world sport)had a FIFA like entity and told the NHL and MLB that they had to release players for international duty.

That way the NHL & MLB couldn't have their own WORLD CUPS or CLASSICS and had to release players for IIHF or IBF TOURNEYS!

Too much control by either club/league or country ain't good for the game at all.

Seems to me that FIFA wants too much control and NHL & MLB have all the control to the point of even different game rules.

We need a Lester B. Pearson to broker what's right for club/league or country and international play in sports

EDIT: Sorry to compare sports again []