The revamped edition of the FIFA Club World Cup was definitely one to remember. What felt like a simple cash grab for many, especially outside the European hemisphere, was a chance to highlight football from different perspectives around the world. Teams like Mamelodi Sundowns (AFCON) and Al-Wydad (AFC) were now on equal footing (no pun intended) with multibillion dollar superteams sharing the same field.

I think the most obvious question surrounding this tournament was if it was truly worth it. With unnecessary injuries, unaffordable ticket prices, to low attendance, the immediate assumption had asserted that the Club World Cup was a resounding failure. Personally, I believe there were some redeeming qualities to take away. Firstly, the CWC showed promise in being able to give players the opportunity to shine on the big stage. Players such as Jhon Arias, Salomon Rondon, and Igor Jesus all broke the narrative that the quality outside of Europe isn’t comparable, yet each earned a move to Europe this summer. Additionally, no matter how you felt about how the CWC played out, one has to admit that it was a critical test run to see how prepared the US is to host the World Cup. The most recent Copa America already had FIFA Execs raising eyebrows at the US’ handling of various incidents surrounding the Pan-American tournament, with many pointing out key security flaws as well as critically outdated infrastructure. This gives FIFA the opportunity to embrace pragmatic policy changes that serve to make next year's tournament the best for its fans and players. Remember, historical precedent shows that when the first World Cup took place, many people still viewed the Olympics as the real competition with no real legacy to build a foundation of legitimacy. Thus, one could reasonably infer the same assumptions about the CWC. It’s already been reported by several outlets that countries like Spain and Morocco have already been interested in potentially hosting the next CWC, indicating that, similar to the original World Cup, we may see improvements to the tournament in a way where demonstrated interest implies that it’s not the worst idea.

However, the quality of the tournament games themselves also prompted discussions surrounding the state of football as we know it. Firstly, the CWC easily confirmed to us that multibillion dollar state-sponsored funding injections and billionaires are here to stay as a winning recipe. ICE agents showing up near or at stadiums discouraged many to take part in what was supposed to be a family friendly event due to fears of being taken away frivolously. Even more so, player Mehdi Taremi was unable to represent his club simply due to diplomatic issues between Iran and the US that are far from his control. The politicization of Juventus players, who showed up to the White House puzzled at a press event behind the US president speaking about military escalation with Iran left a sour taste in many. Subsequently, the US president refusing to leave the podium of the eventual winners Chelsea once celebrations began shows us that this next World Cup will be marred by the shadow of political interests yet again. This forces us to contend with the reality that the upcoming World Cup will force players to tow a delicate line between acknowledging these realities while also policing their own speech in order to spare a PR disaster.