GM football fans. It’s Friday, Jan. 16 - FIFA claims that they received 500 million World Cup ticket requests, the NWSL players’ union has called for a revocation of the new “High Impact Player” rule, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
Editor's note: If you have a moment, we’d really appreciate it if you could answer a one-question feedback form. The responses help us develop Route One for a better experience.
KEY FIXTURES
Premier League MD22: Manchester United vs. Manchester City, Sat 17, 12:30 GMT / 7:30 ET. City have won more Premier League games at Old Trafford than any other visiting side (nine), and United also lost the reverse fixture 3-0 in September. Both sides go into the fixture with three successive draws in the league. Nottingham Forest vs. Arsenal, Sat 17, 17:30 GMT / 15:30 ET. Forest’s home record has been poor this season, having lost more games than any other team at home (6), except West Ham and Wolves (8). Arsenal have also won eight of their last 10 games at Forest. Aston Villa vs. Everton, Sun 18, 16:30 GMT / 11:30 ET. Villa are currently on an 11-game home winning streak, and they are unbeaten in their last 13 games against Everton since 2019. See every Premier League Matchday 22 fixture here.
Results…
Copa del Rey last 16: Santander 0-2 Barcelona | Burgos 0-2 Valencia
Serie A: Verona 2-3 Bologna | Como 1-3 AC Milan (Table)
TOP TALKING POINTS
World Cup Ticket Demand
FIFA claims to have more than 500 million requests for 2026 World Cup tickets in the month-long application window that closed on Tuesday. Beyond the three host nations–the U.S., Canada, and Mexico–the highest number of applications came from Germany, England, Brazil, Spain, Portugal, Argentina, and Colombia.
The most requested matches, in order, were: Colombia vs. Portugal, Mexico vs. Korea Republic, the World Cup final, Mexico vs. South Africa (opener), and the round of 32 match in Toronto, which will likely feature Portugal or Colombia vs. the runner-up of Group L. Fifa has not, however, said how many requests there were for each of those matches or others.
Fans who applied for tickets will be notified of their application results by email no earlier than February 5 and will be allocated randomly for matches in which demand exceeds availability. Unsuccessful applicants will have another chance to purchase tickets closer to the tournament during a last-minute sales phase on a first-come, first-served basis.
Salary Cap Dispute
The NWSL Players Association filed a grievance with the league to call for the revocation of the new "High Impact Player" rule, contending it breaches the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and federal labour law. The mechanism, introduced in December, allows NWSL clubs to exceed salary caps by up to $1m to sign valuable players. The union is asking that the rule be rescinded and that the league be ordered to bargain on any player compensation under a CBA.
The union’s deeper concern is that the league is now deciding which players are “worth more” using league-controlled criteria. Union director Meghann Burke said the NWSL wants to pay players more, which the union agrees with, but the proper way to do that is by raising the salary cap through collective bargaining. As such, the union claims the new mechanism shifts power away from teams and players.
Additionally, if the league made a material change to compensation rules without bargaining, it could be accused of an unfair labour practice, not just a CBA violation.
Dive deeper into why the union opposes the rule here (podcast).
Premier League Projections
Ahead of Matchday 22, Arsenal are 86% favourites to win the league, according to Opta’s prediction model. Mikel Arteta’s side are six points clear of Manchester City, who are projected to have a 9.6% chance. Third-placed Aston Villa (4%) are the only other team with a greater than 1% chance of winning.
In the race for Champions League qualification, Liverpool are projected to join the current top three, with a 58% chance of securing a place in next season’s competition. Chelsea (12%), Newcastle (11%), and Brentford (10.5%) are the only other sides above the 10% mark. The Premier League is currently projected to earn five Champions League places next season, alongside the Bundesliga—see why here.
At the bottom, Wolves (99%), Burnley (93%), and West Ham (89%) are by far the most likely to be relegated. The next most at risk are Nottingham Forest (9%) and Leeds United (7%).
See the Premier League table here.
POLL
Is the Premier League title race already over?
ON THE BALL
Europe
> Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique is open to a sin-bin-style system in football whereby players are temporarily removed from a game for fouls (More)
> League Two side Tranmere Rovers are expected to become the latest English team to come under American ownership, subject to EFL approval (More)
> Ajax were knocked out of the Dutch Cup after a 6-0 defeat at AZ Alkmaar, marking their joint-worst result this century and heaviest loss in the competition since 1927 (More)
> Bayern Munich will face third-place Leipzig in the Bundesliga on Saturday (Jan 17), having already beaten them 6-0 in the first round (More)
Americas
> The Canadian men’s national team will continue its ‘Road to 2026’ with an international friendly against Uzbekistan at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton on June 1, 2026 (More)
> Reigning Liga MX champions Toluca are top of the Clausura season, level on points and goal difference with Guadalajara, having both gone unbeaten in their opening two games; see all Liga MX results (More)
Rest of the World
> Senegal and Morocco will face off in the African Cup of Nations final on Sunday (Jan 18) at 19:00 GMT / 14:00 ET (More)
> Samuel Eto'o, Cameroonian Football Federation president, has been suspended for four games for alleged misbehaviour during his team's loss at Afcon (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Should matches be 60 minutes (instead of 90) with a stop clock whenever the ball is out of play?
🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 👍 Yes (10%)
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🙅♂️ Nope (86%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (4%)
Your punditry takes:
👍 J.H: “The change would create transparency and remove the arbitrarily added time. Supporters could see at a glance how long remains. Time wasted at set pieces and after goals would not be an issue. Referees would be free from the distraction of timekeeping.”
👍 E.P: “Disappointed to see so much opposition in this poll. Football’s current timekeeping methods are too arbitrary and prone to manipulation. Stopping the clock this way would render most time-wasting tactics pointless.”
🙅♂️ P.J: “The 90-minute running clock is such an iconic part of football that it would be like taking the home run away from baseball. The clock is dyed into the fabric of the game and is an elementary part of the game's culture. To mess with that would be to rewrite the Magna Carta.”
🙅♂️ F.S: “The clock not stopping keeps the pace of the game going. It's one of my favourite things about the game compared to other sports. Plus, some throw-ins are so fast that it would be difficult to stop and start the clock on time.”
EXTRA TIME
This goal is getting shouts for Goal of the Season.
Which countries' fans are banned from US World Cup games?
Bayern's record-breaking Bundesliga season in numbers.
The EPL teams that have managed their squad rest the best.
Head coach vs. Manager: what’s the difference?
EAFC releases team of the year.
GAME FACE ON
Question: Who Am I?
I started my career at Dutch club FC Groningen.
I have played in England, Spain, and Germany.
I have scored a Champions League-winning goal and finished fourth in the Ballon d’Or.
Scroll below for the answer.
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
If you don't believe you can win, there is no point in getting out of bed at the end of the day.
Answer
Arjen Robben.
