"Playing different opposition doesn't do us any harm, but the big incentive is the World Championship," Fergie told Sky Sports News.
"We can win the World Championship in December, but we can't win the Premier League in December, so there's time to do that. Hopefully we can.
"It is a little bit of a handicap, but that's what happens when you're successful.
"We're here because we won the European Cup and I hope we're in Abu Dhabi next year as it means we're successful.
"So as far as I'm concerned the incentives outweigh without any question what happens in the Premier League."