(CNN) -- FIFA president Sepp Blatter has called for a reduction in the size of domestic competitions in order to improve the standard of international football.
Blatter told the world governing body's website that the issue of too many matches would be addressed by a think-tank seeking to boost the sport ahead of the next World Cup in Brazil in 2014.
"In my view, and this is something on which (UEFA president) Michel Platini agrees, domestic championships are too long because there are too many teams and too many matches," the 74-year-old said on Wednesday.
"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. CNN
