As Enzo Maresca basked in the afterglow of victory on Sunday, the Chelsea manager declared unexpectedly that one day the Fifa Club World Cup would be bigger even than the Champions League, just one more bold statement in another bizarre 24 hours in Fifa world.

For a club that has set the standard for English and European football in recent years, Manchester City’s 2024-25 campaign will be remembered as a season of rare and dramatic failure.

On the eve of the Club World Cup final, FIFA President Gianni Infantino hailed the tournament a success, learning from the criticisms leveled at the event on issues ranging from extreme heat to stadiums that were only half full for some matches.