Club World Cup | Chelsea s first appearance rate is only 30%. The greedy FIFA seriously overestimates the attractiveness of Club World Cup

In the first round of the Club World Cup Group D match ending on June 17, Chelsea defeated Los Angeles FC 2-0. After the game, Blues coach Maresca admitted that the large number of empty seats in the stands made the team's debut in the Club World Cup in a "weird atmosphere".

This match between the European League champion and the American League team was held at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. This NFL stadium, which can accommodate 70,000 people, only 22,137 people were present in this game. "The game itself is wonderful, the team performed well," Maresca mentioned in the post-match press conference, "but the atmosphere is a bit strange - you can see that the stands are almost empty, far from full."

As Maresca said, the stadium was still empty one hour before the kickoff. When fans holding low-priced tickets on the highest level entered the stadium, they were guided to the lower stands by off-field signs. Most of the audience wore Chelsea jerseys, while the Los Angeles FC core fan group "3252" only occupies a few rows of seats behind one goal.

Los Angeles FC's qualification for participation is quite dramatic: Mexican team Leon was disqualified by FIFA in May this year for violating multiple ownership regulations. This decision originated from the fact that Leon and Pachuca two Mexican teams are both under the Pachuca Group and have a relationship. FIFA's current rules clearly prohibit the same entity from controlling multiple participating clubs to participate in the same competition.

Then, Los Angeles FC defeated the Mexican giant American Football Club 2-1 in the play-off held on May 31, replacing the game. Originally, Mexican teams often sold out tickets when they went to the United States to participate. If the American Club won at that time, the number of viewers in this game might be completely different.

Although the attendance rate of the first game is not optimistic, Maresca expressed his expectations for the next game: "We have considered the particularity of the atmosphere when preparing for the game, but the game against Flamenco will definitely be more exciting. The Brazilian team has always attracted a large number of fans." The group match between Chelsea and Flamenco will be held at the home court of the Philadelphia Eagles, which can accommodate more than 67,000 people. FIFA may re-examine expectations for the expanded version of the Club World Cup. FIFA President Infantino said in December last year: "This event will attract between 2 million and 4 million fans to the United States, and those who stay at home will have the opportunity to watch every game of their own or any other team on TV for the first time in history." FIFA staff in Miami have urged organizers to arrange more games at the Major League Soccer professional stadium (usually no more than 30,000 people), but senior executives led by Infantino tend to choose the largest venue, which ultimately leads to an Atlanta-style embarrassing situation. Such embarrassment will not be an isolated case of this Club World Cup.