FIFA has turned to American financial advisory firm The Raine Group to "jump-start its efforts" to secure the $1B it will "require to successfully launch its inaugural 24-team Club World Cup next year," according to Tariq Panja of the N.Y. TIMES. Hiring The Raine Group, which has "experience in closing deals in the sports sector, suggests that a tender process begun by FIFA in December has failed to secure a backer capable of meeting the organization's requirements to finance" the '21 Club World Cup. Much of the money is "needed to secure the participation of the top European clubs, which are seeking privileged status and would essentially become joint owners of the event." Sources said that leaders from a group of elite European clubs last month "discussed the creation of a joint venture between FIFA and the European Club Association, a status that would elevate their interests above participating teams from soccer’s five other regional confederations." The talks "centered on financial incentives, and the possibility of including as many as 12 European teams, four more than the current format, which caps European involvement at eight." Attempts by FIFA to "close an agreement for the tournament in 2018 with a group led by Japanese conglomerate SoftBank foundered" when FIFA President Gianni Infantino "failed to get the support of the FIFA Council" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/25).
