Bayern Munich: Robert Lewandowski not a fan of Biennial World Cup

The last few months in international football have witnessed growing debate surrounding the proposed idea of Biennial World Cup. FIFA has been trying to push through this proposal. However, there has been significant criticism regarding this format. Bayern Munich has also raised concerns about this idea.

Player Welfare is the biggest concern surrounding the idea of Biennial World Cup. The football calendar is already jam-packed, so adding a World Cup every two years will further add to the workload of players.

The increase in the workload of players will lead to severe injuries that could have a drastic impact on their long-term future in the game. Moreover, playing so much football over a brief period will also affect the mental health of players. The pandemic has made things even difficult for players as COVID also takes a huge toll on their physical and mental health.

Bayern has already been critical about FIFA’s plans. The German club’s prolific striker- Robert Lewandowski, is also not a big fan of the new format of the World Cup. During the Globe Soccer Awards (via BBC), Lewandowski criticised the proposed format of the World Cup and also suggested that this idea would compromise the well-being of players.

"“We have so many games every year, so many tough weeks, not only the games but preparation for the season, preparation for the big tournaments”“If you want to offer something special, something different, we also need a break. If we have a World Cup every two years, the expectation is the time where footballers play at a high level will go down. It is physically and mentally impossible.”"

Robert Lewandowski is one of the fittest players in Europe. The Polish striker has sustained very few serious injuries during his career. Moreover, his performances have gotten better with every passing season. At the age of 33, Lewandowski managed to score 69 goals in a calendar year.

Since the concern about the well-being of players is coming from one of the fittest players around, it highlights damaging this proposal will be for the game. The idea of having a World Cup every two years is lucrative, but it will overall have a net negative impact on the game.

Similar to Robert Lewandowski, more players are likely to voice concerns about the new format. Paris Saint-Germain and France forward Kylian Mbappe also criticised the idea of having a World Cup every two years at the same event on Monday.

If superstars and clubs such as Bayern maintain a strong opinion about this subject, then FIFA will have no other option but to drop this idea. Along with FIFA’s World Cup ideas, few players have also voiced concerns about the expansion of the Champions League. The addition of more clubs in European competition from 2024 has been announced by UEFA, but this proposal also compromises the well-being of players.