Does anyone actually care about the Club World Cup?

There is the £21bn broadcasting deal, the £97m prize for the winners, the guarantee of a minimum in excess of £30m in revenue for the Premier League participants.

- RICHARD JOLLY

There is the possibility of the kind of windfall that could bring domestic dominance for a club from outside Europe. There is the potential reward of cracking America, as everyone looks to build their brand.

In a sense, though, the Club World Cup depends upon a different kind of investment. Whatever the big financial figures, it needs buy-in – not from Fifa’s partners but from the part of the footballing family who are rarely consulted, the fans. The Club World Cup is in a battle for hearts and minds and eyeballs. It is a matter of if – and it is too early to draw definitive conclusions – people buy into it; if they invest their time, their hopes and their emotions.

It is perhaps easiest to assess the equation of supply and demand. It is perhaps Fifa misjudged the match-going public. The empty seats suggest venues that were too big and making tickets too expensive. It is partly about the American fans, partly an issue of how many clubs have brought a sizeable travelling support, and how the evidence is mixed.

But there is a broader test, conducted not in Atlanta or Seattle but in armchairs and sofas. How many are tuning in and how often?

Because there are audiences Fifa will be chasing, hoping the interest they displayed in established competitions is transferred to a new – or expanded, or reinvented – one. There is the summer tournament audience, those who, if they can, would try to watch every game of a World Cup or European Championship; will they assume the same approach with a Club World Cup?

Pricey tickets, big stadiums and US fans’ lack of enthusiasm translate to low attendances (Reuters)

There are those who, in the group stages and last 16, would not go that far, but would tune in for the main game of the day. Are they carving out a couple of hours every night for the Club World Cup?