'Enough is enough!'- FIFPro and European Leagues file legal complaint against FIFA's 'abusive' calendar

In the past few years, players and pundits have addressed the oversaturated football schedule frequently and it has become a major topic of discussion. Players such as Dani Carvajal, Thibaut Courtois, and Rodri have opened up about the same over the last few months. The boards of FIFPro and European Leagues, the organisations that represent clubs in over 30 nations throughout Europe, agreed to pursue legal action in July.

FIFpro has officially lodged a complaint against FIFA, targeting the expansions of both the FIFA Club World Cup and the FIFA World Cup, which will grow to 32 teams in 2025 and 46 teams in 2026, respectively. The complaint argues that the extended football calendar violates European Union competition law, poses risks to player safety and well-being, and describes FIFA's actions as "abusive" and "unjustified."

Speaking to the media, FIFPro Europe president David Terrier said: "FIFA refuses to listen and engage with the players, the main labour resource of our industry, who are there on the pitch, creating a powerhouse of European and global entertainment culture, and pushing their bodies to the limit.

"But we have listened to our players, have received the same messages for a long period of time, that they are playing too much and do not have enough time to recover. Ahead of the worst season ever for workload, many have also decided to talk in public with the same message: enough is enough."

Earlier this month, Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said: "It is getting to a tipping point. The feedback we have from players is that there is too much football being played and there is constant expansion.

"The Premier League hasn't changed shape. What has changed over the last few decades is the march of international and regional football competitions."

FIFA has yet to respond to the formal complaint filed with the European Commission. However, the organization has consistently downplayed the impact of its new and expanded tournaments on player workloads, emphasizing that it is responsible for only a small portion of the total matches played each season.