Tournament details | |
---|---|
Host country | United States |
Dates | June 15 – July 13 |
Teams | 32 (from 6 confederations) |
The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is the planned 21st edition of the FIFA Club World Cup, an international club soccer competition organized by FIFA. The tournament is scheduled to be played in the United States from June 15 to July 13, 2025. It is planned to be the first under an expanded format with 32 teams,[1] including the winners of the four previous continental championships.[2]
Manchester City is the defending champion.
Since its return from hiatus in 2005, the FIFA Club World Cup had been held annually in December and limited to the winners of continental club competitions.[3] As early as late 2016, FIFA president Gianni Infantino suggested expanding the Club World Cup to 32 teams beginning in 2019 and rescheduling it to June/July to be more balanced and more attractive to broadcasters and sponsors.[4] In late 2017, FIFA discussed proposals to expand the competition to 24 teams and have it be played every four years by 2021, replacing the FIFA Confederations Cup.[5] The expanded format and schedule of Club World Cup, to be played in June and July 2021, was confirmed at the March 2019 FIFA Council meeting in Miami.[6][7] China was appointed as host in October 2019,[8] but the 2021 event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[9][10]
On June 23, 2023, FIFA confirmed that the United States will host the 2025 tournament as a prelude to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[11] The host cities for the tournament remain undecided.[12] The 32 teams will be divided into eight groups of four teams with the top two teams in each group qualifying to the knockout stage.[13] The format will be the same that was used in the FIFA World Cup between 1998 and 2022, with the exception of a third-place play-off.[14]
In January 2024, it was reported that the tournament would take place on the East Coast to be closer to European broadcasters and viewers while also avoiding conflicts with the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup, which will also take place primarily in the United States around the same time but on the West Coast.[15]
On February 14, 2023, the FIFA Council approved the slot allocation for the 2025 tournament based on a "set of objective metrics and criteria". UEFA was awarded the most slots with twelve, while CONMEBOL was given the second most with six. The AFC, CAF, and CONCACAF were all given four slots, while the OFC and the host association were given one slot each.[16] On March 14, 2023, the FIFA Council approved the key principles of the access list for the tournament.[17] The principles are as follows, considering competitions completed during a four-year period from 2021 to 2024:[18]
If a club wins two or more seasons of its confederation's top club competition, additional teams will be determined by a club ranking over the four-year period. Furthermore, a restriction of two clubs per association will be applied, with the exception of champion clubs if more than two clubs from the same association win their confederation's top club competition. The calculation method for the four-year club rankings within each confederation will be based on sporting criteria during seasons completed between 2021 and 2024, and will be finalized after consultation with confederations and stakeholders.[17][18]
The following teams have qualified for the tournament:[21][22][23][18]
Confederation | Team(s) | Qualification | Qualified date(s) | Participation |
---|---|---|---|---|
AFC (4 slots) | Al-Hilal | Winners of the 2021 AFC Champions League | March 14, 2023[note 3] | 4th (Previous: 2019, 2021, 2022) |
Urawa Red Diamonds | Winners of the 2022 AFC Champions League | May 6, 2023 | 4th (Previous: 2007, 2017, 2023) | |
Al Ain | Winners of the 2023–24 AFC Champions League | May 25, 2024 | 2nd (Previous: 2018) | |
Ulsan HD | AFC 4-year ranking | April 17, 2024 | 3rd (Previous: 2012, 2020) | |
CAF (4 slots) | Al Ahly | Winners of the 2020–21, 2022–23, and 2023–24 CAF Champions League | March 14, 2023[note 3] | 10th (Previous: 2005, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023) |
Wydad AC | Winners of the 2021–22 CAF Champions League | March 14, 2023[note 3] | 3rd (Previous: 2017, 2022) | |
Espérance de Tunis | CAF 4-year ranking | April 26, 2024 | 4th (Previous: 2011, 2018, 2019) | |
Mamelodi Sundowns | CAF 4-year ranking | April 26, 2024 | 2nd (Previous: 2016) | |
CONCACAF (4 slots) | Monterrey | Winners of the 2021 CONCACAF Champions League | March 14, 2023[note 3] | 6th (Previous: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2019, 2021) |
Seattle Sounders FC | Winners of the 2022 CONCACAF Champions League | March 14, 2023[note 3] | 2nd (Previous: 2022) | |
León | Winners of the 2023 CONCACAF Champions League | June 4, 2023 | 2nd (Previous: 2023) | |
Pachuca | Winners of the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup | June 1, 2024 | 5th (Previous: 2007, 2008, 2010, 2017) | |
CONMEBOL (6 slots) | Palmeiras | Winners of the 2021 Copa Libertadores | March 14, 2023[note 3] | 3rd (Previous: 2020, 2021) |
Flamengo | Winners of the 2022 Copa Libertadores[note 4] | March 14, 2023[note 3] | 3rd (Previous: 2019, 2022) | |
Fluminense | Winners of the 2023 Copa Libertadores[note 4] | November 4, 2023 | 2nd (Previous: 2023) | |
TBD | Winners of the 2024 Copa Libertadores[note 5] | November 30, 2024 | ||
River Plate | CONMEBOL 4-year ranking[note 4] | May 14, 2024[24] | 3rd (Previous: 2015, 2018) | |
Boca Juniors | CONMEBOL 4-year ranking | August 22, 2024 | 2nd (Previous: 2007) | |
OFC (1 slot) | Auckland City | Best OFC Champions League winners in the OFC 4-year ranking[note 2] | December 17, 2023 | 12th (Previous: 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2022, 2023) |
UEFA (12 slots) | Chelsea | Winners of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League | March 14, 2023[note 3] | 3rd (Previous: 2012, 2021) |
Real Madrid | Winners of the 2021–22 and 2023–24 UEFA Champions League | March 14, 2023[note 3] | 7th (Previous: 2000, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2022) | |
Manchester City | Winners of the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League | June 10, 2023 | 2nd (Previous: 2023) | |
Bayern Munich | UEFA 4-year ranking | December 17, 2023[note 6] | 3rd (Previous: 2013, 2020) | |
Paris Saint-Germain | UEFA 4-year ranking | December 17, 2023[note 6] | 1st | |
Inter Milan | UEFA 4-year ranking | December 17, 2023[note 6] | 2nd (Previous: 2010) | |
Porto | UEFA 4-year ranking | December 17, 2023[note 6] | 1st | |
Benfica | UEFA 4-year ranking | December 17, 2023[note 6] | 1st | |
Borussia Dortmund | UEFA 4-year ranking | March 6, 2024 | 1st | |
Juventus | UEFA 4-year ranking | March 12, 2024 | 1st | |
Atlético Madrid | UEFA 4-year ranking | April 16, 2024 | 1st | |
Red Bull Salzburg | UEFA 4-year ranking | April 17, 2024 | 1st | |
CONCACAF (host) (1 slot) | TBD | TBD | 1st |
Teams | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Total[note 7] | ||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
W | D | L | Phase | Points | W | D | L | Phase | Points | W | D | L | Phase | Points | W | D | L | Phase | Points | ||
River Plate† (Q) | 3 | 4 | 3 | QF | 22 | 5 | 2 | 1 | R16 | 23 | 4 | 1 | 3 | R16 | 19 | 7 | 2 | 0 | QF | 32 | 96 |
Boca Juniors (Q) | 3 | 3 | 2 | R16 | 18 | 3 | 3 | 2 | R16 | 18 | 4 | 8 | 1 | Final | 35 | 0 | 0 | 0 | DNQ | 0 | 71 |
Olimpia | 3 | 2 | 5 | QF | 20 | 2 | 2 | 2 | GS | 11 | 5 | 2 | 3 | QF | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | DNQ | 0 | 57 |
Colo-Colo† | 0 | 0 | 0 | DNQ | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | GS | 10 | 1 | 3 | 2 | GS | 9 | 3 | 4 | 2 | QF | 22 | 41 |
On July 15, 2024, media rights tender for FIFA’s new top club competition open for the Americas, Asia, and Middle East & North Africa for 2025 editions.[26] FIFA published an "invitation to tender in the Americas, Asia, and Middle East & North Africa" weeks after talks with tech giant Apple over an exclusive $1 billion global rights deal for the tournament, which was said to be a quarter of FIFA's broadcasting target value for the tournament reportedly stalled.[27][28][29]
On September 4, 2024, FIFA released the official emblem and audio signature of the tournament. The emblem takes inspiration from the ball, football history and culture, with the initials of the tournament abstracted into a circular icon.[30] The official audio will feature Italian singer Gala's song Freed from Desire.[31]
The proposed expansion was criticized by FIFPRO, a global union of professional players, as well as the World Leagues Forum, which represents professional leagues; both organizations raised concerns about player welfare due to the added fixtures in an already congested playing calendar.[32][33] The Spanish top division league, La Liga, also criticized the plan and said in a statement that it would consider legal action to block the expansion.[34] Many clubs and national federations have opposed its scheduling, accusing FIFA of prioritizing money over the health of the players.[35]
The addition of the annual FIFA Intercontinental Cup tournament was also criticized for creating an overload of competitions that would further put the health of the players at risk.[36] In May 2024, FIFPRO and the World Leagues Forum published a letter they sent to FIFA that calls on a rescheduling of the tournament as well as a reform to the FIFA International Match Calendar to give players more time to rest between major competitions, which have also seen expansions. The organizations also stated in the letter that they would advise member clubs to seek legal action or other options in the event that schedule congestion is not addressed.[36][37] On June 13, 2024, FIFPRO announced that England’s Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) and France's Union Nationale des Footballeurs Professionnels (UNPF) submitted a legal claim with the Business Court in Brussels to protest the tournament.[38]
In a written response to criticism of the added fixtures stated in the letter sent by the FIFPRO and World League Forms FIFA stated that the accusations stated in the letter were "not supported by facts" and that the schedule for the Club World Cup was aligned with the FIFA International Match Calendar to assure enough time between the tournament final and the start of domestic leagues to ensure player welfare.[39]
Some have questioned the potential impact of transfers on the tournament as the summer transfer window will be open in many leagues during the tournament, and thus players in the tournament may potentially be moved to a different club during including to other teams playing in the tournament. In addition many European player contracts will expire in the middle of the tournament on June 30 which may not make them able to play the full tournament as they would become a free agent. FIFA has stated that players will likely be banned from representing multiple clubs, should they be transferred between tournament clubs during the tournament. Though it is unclear if a special arrangement allowing clubs to briefly extend expiring player contracts from June 30 to the end of the tournament will be in place for the tournament.[40]
In an issue not unique to the Club World Cup, some teams in the tournament are owned by multi-club ownership groups including tournament qualifiers Pachuca and León which are both owned by Grupo Pachuca which may raise conflict of interest concerns. In a statement in response to this concern FIFA stated that “Regarding elements of regulation of the competition, including participation, all appropriate measures will be taken within the regulatory framework which will be put in place to ensure the integrity of the competition, as has always been the case for all of FIFA’s competitions.”[40]