GM football fans. It’s Thursday, June. 26 - Barcelona confirm the reopening date of the Camp Nou, the introduction of the Independent Football Regulator is now in sight, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
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KEY FIXTURE
Club World Cup: Juventus vs. Manchester City, 20:00 / 15:00. Both clubs have already qualified for the last 16 and are now seeking to finish top of the group, with Juve currently boasting a slight advantage through goals scored. If City finish second, they will face Real Madrid in the next round; however, they’re in good form, having suffered only one defeat in their last 15 matches in all competitions. Meanwhile, Juventus are on a seven-game unbeaten run across all competitions and have won each of their last three meetings against City. See the current Club World Cup group standings here.
TV Channels: DAZN (UK) | DAZN (US) | DAZN (Canada)
Results…
Club World Cup: Dortmund 1-0 Ulsan | Mamelodi Sundowns 0-0 Fluminense | Inter Milan vs. River Plate & Urawa Reds vs. Monterrey to conclude shortly after publication (See Results)
TOP TALKING POINTS
Camp Nou Reopening
Barcelona will return to the renovated Spotify Camp Nou on August 10 for a pre-season match after spending the last two seasons playing at the Olympic Stadium—watch the announcement video here. The stadium will initially open with a reduced capacity of around 60,000, as construction continues. La Liga has approved Barcelona’s request to play their opening league fixtures away from home to allow more time for the renovations.
Upon completion, the Camp Nou will have a capacity of 105,000, making it the largest stadium in Spain. Before renovations, Barcelona’s home already held the title of Europe’s largest football stadium with a capacity of 99,354—Wembley Stadium is the closest, with around 90,000.
The redevelopment is expected to ease some of the financial pressures Barcelona have faced in recent years. Following the Santiago Bernabeu renovations, Real Madrid’s stadium generated an estimated €1m per day, contributing 29% of the club’s total income. Tottenham Hotspur currently lead the Premier League in matchday revenue, following the opening of their new stadium in 2019.
Dive deeper into the history of the Camp Nou here.
Messi’s Mega Earnings
Lionel Messi is Major League Soccer’s highest-paid player for the second year running, with a total guaranteed compensation of $20.45m. The 38-year-old’s earnings are greater than the total payrolls of 21 MLS teams.
Messi’s base salary is $12m, with the rest coming from additional revenue streams, including his revenue-sharing agreement with Apple, the league’s broadcast partner. According to Sportico, Messi is estimated to earn up to $150m over the two-and-a-half-year contract he signed with Miami and MLS in 2023.
The average guaranteed compensation across the league’s player pool is $649,199, up 9.22% from last year. Inter Miami’s total player compensation stands at $46.84m, far ahead of the next club, Toronto FC, at $34.15m—the bulk of which comes from Lorenzo Insigne’s $15.44m salary. See the full list of compensation here.
Regulator In Sight
Supporters of the Independent Football Regulator (IFR) bill are confident (paywall) that it will become law before UK politicians break up for their summer recess on July 22. This comes after the bill passed through the committee stage of the legislative process. It means that the regulator is likely to be in place for next season.
The IFR’s main objective is to ensure the financial stability and sustainability of English football. Under the new draft bill, the IFR’s ‘backstop powers’ have been expanded to include parachute payments when deciding how much the Premier League should redistribute to the English Football League (EFL). David Kogan, a media specialist, is the incoming chair of the new regulator.
The bill must now clear the report stage and third reading in the House of Commons, followed by final amendments and royal assent.
POLL
Have you enjoyed the Club World Cup group stage?
ON THE BALL
Europe
> EFL fixtures for next season are set to be released today (More) | After 305 Premier League appearances, Adam Lallana has confirmed his retirement from football aged 37 (More) | Arsenal are signing Spanish goalkeeper Kepa from Chelsea for £5m; the Blues bought him for £72m in 2018 (More)
> England have made it to the Euro Under-21 final after Harvey Elliot’s double against the Netherlands in the semi-final (Match Report) | Gareth Southgate has received a knighthood at Windsor Castle for his services to football (More)
> Brighton owner Tony Bloom has bought a 29% stake in Hearts for £9.86m and vows to "disrupt the pattern of domination which has been in place for far too long" in the country’s top league (More)
> Luka Modric, 39, has agreed to join Serie A side AC Milan from Real Madrid after the Club World Cup (More)
Americas
> Fifa has opened disciplinary proceedings against Pachuca captain Gustavo Cabral over allegations of racist abuse towards Real Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger (More)
> Canada have won Group B in the Concacaf Gold Cup to advance to the knockout rounds following a 2-0 win over El Salvador (More); see the knockout stage schedule (More)
> Neymar has extended his contract with Santos until December; since returning to his boyhood club in January, he has made 14 appearances and scored three goals (More)
Rest of the World
> Cristiano Ronaldo is close to agreeing a new contract at Al Nassr as the 40-year-old looks to extend his stay (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Should World Cup group draws be influenced by off-pitch political tensions?
🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 👍 Yes (34%)
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🙅♂️ Nope (63%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (3%)
Your punditry takes:
👍 P.D: “Ensuring (for example) Iran doesn’t play against the US makes very little difference to the tournament, except that if that game did happen, the football would be entirely overshadowed by the political furore surrounding it. It's not ideal, of course, from a purely sporting view, but far better to ensure this doesn't happen.”
🙅♂️ M.A: “I don’t think so. Take Iran, for example. They’ll have to play in the U.S. at some point in 2026 if they’re aiming to win it all, since the final is hosted there. If political tensions are so severe that they refuse to play on American soil, they could simply boycott the tournament altogether. Once a nation agrees to participate, they accept the location and potential matchups. If that’s not acceptable, withdrawal is the alternative. Not reworking the draw. Political separation only makes sense in home-and-away qualifiers, where travel and local tensions make direct fixtures risky. But in a fixed-location tournament? Let football run its course.”
✍️ P.H: “World Cup group draws can consider off-pitch political tensions in extreme cases—especially where safety or diplomatic breakdowns make a match unfeasible. But in general, sport should remain a bridge, not a battleground, and drawing lines based solely on political risks undermines that spirit. It’s a delicate balance, but avoidance shouldn’t be the default.”
EXTRA TIME
Ange’s pre-match speech before the Europa League final.
How important is winning U21 Euros to senior success?
Pep plays two-touch with his players on the beach in Florida.
A complete guide to the Women’s Euro stadiums.
Adidas unveil the 2025 MLS All-Star shirt.
… and Man United’s leaked 25-26 away kit.
Analysing Lallana’s career following his retirement.
GAME FACE ON
Trivia: After Juventus, AC Milan and Inter, which team has won the most Serie A titles?
True or false? It took Cristiano Ronaldo 27 games to score his first Champions League goal.
Riddle me this: What starts when the game should end?
Scroll below for the answer.
ON TODAY
Club World Cup
Juventus vs. Manchester City (20:00)
Wydad Casablanca vs. Al Ain (20:00)
*All times in UK. ET -5. CDT -6. PDT -8. MDT -7. CET +1.
Answer
Genoa. True. Injury time.
Want more? Try our daily football Wordle – guess the name of a current or former player in six tries. Play it here.
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