Wenger doesn't 'share Klopp's view' of CWC

Arsene Wenger has dismissed Jurgen Klopp's disapproval of FIFA's revamped 32-team Club World Cup, calling the tourney a "fantastic competition" and emphasising the enactment it has received from participating teams, players, and managers.

Klopp, the erstwhile Liverpool manager, described the expanded summertime contention arsenic "the worst thought ever invented" successful an interrogation with German paper Die Welt 2 weeks ago. Wenger, present FIFA's main of planetary shot development, countered these remarks connected Thursday during a FIFA Technical Study Group (TSG) briefing successful New York.

"Everyone is entitled to an opinion, and I don't stock Jurgen Klopp's presumption astatine all," Wenger told reporters. "I consciousness that a Club World Cup, a existent Club World Cup was needed. If you marque an enquiry contiguous with each the clubs who were present astatine this competition, I'm fundamentally definite that we person 100% of answers of radical who privation to bash this again. So that's fundamentally the champion answer."

Wenger besides pointed to the unexpectedly precocious attendance figures arsenic grounds of the competition's success.

"The decisive question is, bash the fans similar it? Attendance projections were low, but successful reality, they were overmuch higher. The reply is there," helium added.

The tourney has provided FIFA with a investigating crushed up of the 2026 World Cup, which volition instrumentality spot crossed North America. Wenger acknowledged that the summertime vigor successful the United States posed challenges, but said FIFA has learned invaluable lessons to code these issues.

"The vigor successful immoderate games was a problem," Wenger admitted. "We tried to combat that with cooling breaks and watering the pitches during breaks. We learned a batch connected that front."

He singled retired Orlando arsenic 1 of the venues wherever transportation conditions proved difficult, though helium praised the prime of earthy writer pitches overall. Philadelphia's surface, helium said, would service arsenic a benchmark for aboriginal competitions successful the U.S.

Looking ahead, Wenger said FIFA is considering utilizing covered stadiums successful cities specified arsenic Atlanta, Dallas, Los Angeles, and Houston to big aboriginal matches successful adjacent year's tournaments. He besides revealed that FIFA analysts person studied the interaction of vigor connected subordinate performance, uncovering that temperatures supra 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) impact high-speed moving and sprints much than wide distances covered.

"Certainly adjacent year, determination volition beryllium much roofed stadiums arsenic we person to travel the TV schedule. We are learning to beryllium amended equipped to woody with these conditions," Wenger said.

The inaugural 32-team Club World Cup concludes connected Sunday, with Paris Saint-Germain taking connected Chelsea successful the last astatine MetLife Stadium successful New Jersey.