The FIFA Club World Cup – what’s the point?

Liverpool travel to Qatar in December to play in the FIFA Club World Cup – a tournament where nothing is usually learned or achieved. In Jurgen Klopp’s pre-match press conference on Friday afternoon, the oft-discussed topic of fixture congestion came up.
On Wednesday evening, Liverpool defeated Arsenal on penalty kicks in an extraordinary Carabao Cup round-of-16 contest, which ended 5-5 after 90 minutes.
An away tie against Aston Villa was the big draw and the game is due to be scheduled for the week commencing December 16.
Except that currently clashes with the Reds’ commitments to play in the FIFA World Club Cup, where they will automatically be entered into the semi-finals.
When quizzed about a potential solution, boss Jurgen Klopp was unequivocal in his response. “If they don’t find a place for us – an appropriate place – not 3 am on Christmas Day, then we don’t play it,” he said.
By “it” Klopp was referring to the Carabao Cup fixture – thus handing Aston Villa a place in semi-finals – rather than talking about them playing in Qatar.
Is that really a priority for Liverpool at this stage of their development, with a tilt at their first Premier League title looking likely due to Manchester City’s dropped points this season?
Klopp has talked repeatedly about too many games being played and that will not be helped by flying half way around the world to play what are essentially friendly matches during the busiest period of the year in English football.
And even if Liverpool’s schedule were not so busy, what is the big benefit about playing in the FIFA Club World Cup?
SInce 2007, only once has the non-European team managed to win the competition, meaning it is virtually a foregone conclusion before it has even started.
The trophy will be met with a distinct air of indifference if Liverpool win it as they have already won the UEFA Champions League, by far the most prestigious trophy in club football.
So, really, playing against the winners of the African and Asian counterparts will not prove otherwise.
Liverpool competed in the trophy once before under Rafa Benitez after their Istanbul heroics in 2005.
That was a rare occasion when the non-European team did not win the trophy as Liverpool were defeated by Sao Paulo 1-0.
It is difficult to determine what the counterfactual history would be. If Liverpool hadn’t have gone all the way to Japan to play in the trophy, could they have challenged Chelsea for the Premier League title? They only ended up finishing nine points behind Jose Mourinho’s men.
Similarly, could the wheels fall off this season if Liverpool travel to Qatar during the busy Christmas period and lose some of their momentum?
The vast majority of fans would surely agree the Carabao Cup should trump the FIFA Club World Cup.
Obviously in terms of hierarchy, FIFA overrules the FA, but a domestic trophy would be a lot more symbolic than a trophy played in front of no fans against nonentity teams.