In the dispute between the FIFA World Federation Association and the FIFPRO international player union, both sides are striking tones. FIFA chef Emilio García Silvero accused union boss Sergio Marchi on Thursday to be in a “permanent state of the opposition” and try to be “more papal than the pope”.
The Argentine Marchi had recently accused FIFA in view of the extended calendar and the expansion of the club World Cup “continued to maximize their income at the expense of the body and health of the players”. He compared FIFA’s approach to the tactics of Emperor Nero, who calmly put the people with “bread and games”.
García reacted with sharp words. “In the past few weeks it seems that some are more interested in making waves in the media instead of dealing with the real problems of the players,” he said: “Being FIFPro president does not mean that you have to look for a new subject every day.”
There has been a permanent dispute between FIFA and the FIFPRO for months. Among other things, FIFPRO has taken legal action against FIFA together with the European Ligenverband. The goal is a say in the design of the calendar.
Just a week ago, the FIFPRO had accused FIFA, “the real problems with which players are confronted in different parts of the world” and asked: “Does FIFA know how much a player in Africa deserves? Is it aware that it is common in many parts of the world that salaries are not paid for weeks?”
The FIFPro message was signed by player unions from 58 countries. García, in turn, questioned the international representation of the FIFPRO: “The FIFPRO is not the only player union, even if it would like to be. They don’t want us to speak to others. The FIFPRO has no representatives in Brazil, Ecuador or in Germany.”
According to the FIFA, FIFA had already held a session with “several players from all over the world” during the club World Cup in New York. The FIFPRO was just as much part of it as the German Association VDV, which also criticized the club World Cup.