Top players afraid to speak out against packed playing schedule: FIFPro chief

AMSTERDAM — Top players are afraid to speak out against playing too many matches for fear of the impact it could have on their careers, the secretary-general of global players' union FIFPro said on Friday.

Alex Phillips was speaking after FIFPro held a meeting in Amsterdam with 58 national player unions from around the world to discuss concerns over the way the sport's world governing body FIFA is managing global soccer.

The meeting came less than two weeks after the end of the first 32-team Club World Cup in the United States, a tournament hailed as a huge success by FIFA president Gianni Infantino, but criticized by FIFPro for the demands it has placed on players already faced with a crowded schedule.