SOCCER NEWS:FIFA PRESIDENT Sepp Blatter has said there is too much domestic football, potentially putting himself on collision course with European clubs who last year complained about the international fixture list.

Blatter also said he wanted only professional referees to officiate at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil and admitted that women’s football was struggling to progress.

Last year’s World Cup in South Africa came at the end of a long season and a number of leading players performed below their expected level including Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Lionel Messi and Fernando Torres.

“In my view . . domestic championships are too long because there are too many teams and too many matches,” Blatter said in an interview on Fifa’s website yesterday.

“Teams in leagues with 20 clubs play 38 games, on top of which they also have national cup competitions and league cups, etc.

“This also creates a conflict of interest between national teams and clubs, some of whom complain that their players come back tired or injured. That’s not the fault of the international calendar, however, and it’s a subject that ought to be discussed.”

Blatter’s comments conflicted directly with the view of European Clubs’ Association president Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who criticised the international friendlies played at the start of this season.

Rummenigge said in September that clubs wanted a greater say in the international calendar and described the August matches, which included Spain flying off to Mexico only one month after the World Cup as “nonsense” games.

Blatter also said he wanted only professional referees officiating at the 2014 World Cup.

“That’s a target we have to reach. Coaches are professional now and so are players, and there’s no reason why referees shouldn’t be either,” he said.

England’s Howard Webb was one of only a tiny minority of professional referees at the last World Cup – in which he refereed the final. There were two serious mistakes by officials at the tournament – Frank Lampard’s infamous disallowed goal for England against Germany and a clearly offside goal by Carlos Tevez for Argentina against Mexico.

Blatter said he hoped this year’s women’s World Cup in Germany could spark interest in the sport.

“I think it’s important it’s taking place in the heart of Europe, in a country where women’s football is strong,” he said.

“The women’s game has struggled to gain acceptance in financial terms. People don’t seem to have much faith in it, but Germany can change that by putting on a good tournament and, more importantly than anything, filling the stadiums. A crowd of 50,000 is expected for the opening match in Berlin, which is already a great achievement.

“Young women have a lot of passion for the game. . . When women reach a certain age or level they find there aren’t any professional leagues around, which makes it difficult for them to carry on playing.Technically, however, the game has improved a great deal.”

In his wide-ranging interview Blatter has also told a new football task force to investigate whether there should be a change to the system of three points for a win and one for a draw.

The Task Force Football 2014, comprising players, ex-players, administrators, referees and medical experts, has been set up to look at the laws of the game and come up with ways to make it more attractive, with the aim of introducing changes at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Blatter said its objective is to assess tournaments and the way in which the game is organised.

“At the moment three points are awarded for a win and one for a draw, which is something we can discuss and decide whether it’s a good thing or not.”

However Asian Football Confederation president Mohamed Bin Hammam, the Qatari who delivered a stunning victory for his country in the contest to host the 2022 World Cup, yesterday said the world governing body needed much improvement.

Bin Hammam refused to rule out standing for president, and has been angered by Blatter announcing a plan to introduce an anti-corruption committee without first running the proposal by executive committee members.

“Some of Fifa’s acts I do not approve of or agree with,” said Bin Hammam. “I think Fifa needs a lot of improvement.”

Blatter has also come under attack from Bayern Munich president, Uli Hoeness, who has claimed that he “has lost control” of Fifa.