UEFA and CONMEBOL Alliance: A rival to FIFA? -By Ayobami Okerinde

The alliance between UEFA (the governing body of European teams) and CONMEBOL (the governing body of South American teams) has continued to grow stronger in strength. In 2021, UEFA and CONMEBOL announced that there’s a plan in place to expand the scope of the UEFA Nations League to accommodate teams from South America. The Nations League was created in 2018 by UEFA to replace the Friendly Matches organized by FIFA. This was created to give more competitiveness as opposed to friendly games. The alliance of UEFA and CONMEBOL beyond the scope of football has proven to be one to rival FIFA.

The Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) was founded in 1904 to provide unity amongst football nations. It currently has 211 members following Russia’s suspension in 2022. FIFA as a governing body also has six subsidiaries which are divided according to regions and member nations can only belong to one. The subsidiaries are AFC (Asia and Australia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North America), CONMEBOL (South America), OFC (Oceania) and UEFA (Europe). FIFA is in charge of organizing and promoting association football’s biggest international competitions, including the World Cup, which first took place in 1930, and the Women’s World Cup, which began in 1991.
The alliance of UEFA and CONMEBOL is set to rival some of FIFA’s competitions. The joint UEFA Nations League and the revitalised Finalissimo.

Joint Nations League: A fightback at FIFA two-year World Cup plan?
In May 2021, the Saudi Arabian Football Federation proposed a two-year World Cup plan. This idea spearheaded by former Arsenal manager and FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development, Arsene Wenger, will see the World Cup from four years to two years. This idea according to Wenger, “will not only increase the regularity of the World Cup but also redraw the international calendar in a way that suits all elements of the game.” One of FIFA’s propositions, a two-year World Cup plan will double the number of hosts of the World Cup and will allow other countries to host the Mundial. Africa has only hosted the World Cup in 2010, the last time it was held in Asia was in 2002, with Europe and South America leading in terms of host regions. FIFA had already made changes to the format of the World Cup, starting from the 2026 World Cup finals which will be held in USA, Mexico and Canada, it will feature 48 teams instead of the usual 32 teams. This idea was met with opposition from UEFA, CONMEBOL and EPL. According to UEFA president, Alexander Ceferin, the two-year World Cup plan by FIFA is to ‘shortchange the power of Europe in football”.

In Nov 2021, UEFA and CONMEBOL agreed to strengthen the relationship of both federations and host joint events till June 2028. One of the plans is to host a joint Nations League. This will see the (top) teams from South America join forces with UEFA to play a reformed UEFA Nations League. The plan according to both parties will strengthen the relationship and will also reduce the miles travelled by footballers during the international break during the season since the tournament will be held in Europe.

The joint agreement until 2028 is a tactical one by UEFA and CONMEBOL to tackle the plan of FIFA. With the format and host of the 2026 World Cup already decided, FIFA’s two-year plan will only become a reality from the 2030 World Cup which will coincide with the centenary of the World Cup. Since the inception of the World Cup, only teams from UEFA and CONMEBOL have ever played in the final or won the World Cup. After the 2022 World Cup is held in Qatar, FIFA will have to decide the host of the 2030 World Cup. This will give UEFA and CONMEBOL ample time to decide on what to do. With both teams being the most successful and unarguably having the best of players in possession, a withdrawal from FIFA will be on the table, should the plan comes to fruition. With this, FIFA is set to lose two of its federation which will throw the existence of FIFA into jeopardy considering the strength of both federations.

Finalissima: The New Confederations Cup?

The FIFA Confederations Cup was founded in 1992. It is a quadrennial tournament that precedes the World Cup. It is a tournament contested by winners of each continental competition, host country and current World Cup holder. In March 2019, FIFA announced it has abolished the Confederations Cup and will be replaced by an extended playoff of the new FIFA World Cup format.

On the other hand, the Finalissima saw a revival after a 29-year hiatus when Argentina defeated Italy 3-0 at the Wembley Stadium on June 1, 2022. The competition started in 1993 and it is contested by winners of the UEFA and CONMEBOL tournament. After two editions in 1985 and 1993, its revival was agreed upon in 2020 when both parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to revive the competition, amongst others. This decision was agreed upon a year after FIFA decided to abolish the Confederations Cup and could also be seen as a lesser version of the competition, involving just two teams instead of eight. It is unarguable that UEFA and CONMEBOL are the biggest regional members of FIFA and as such could easily spread their tentacles to incorporate other regions in future tournaments away from the hands of FIFA.

What’s next?
UEFA and CONMEBOL proposition hasn’t been smooth all through, it has also been met with restraints. Many have argued the importance of the Nations League, which has also led to players playing more matches under the guise of competition. Kelvin DeBruyne of Manchester City recently described the Nations League as ‘glorified friendly games.”

The partnership will no doubt strengthen the relationship of both regions but might pose a bigger threat to FIFA. If both parties do not find a common ground, there might be a breakaway which will hinder the growth of football. UEFA as a body is not alienated from issues internally, the issues from the Super League are still much in contention.