The whole world saw the draw for the new expanded Club World Cup
FIFA held the draw for the 8 groups of the final phase of its new "glamorous" competition on Thursday evening (5/12), which will be held from June 15 to July 13, 2025 in 12 major stadiums in USA.
In a spectacular ceremony in Miami, with simultaneous broadcasts in other US cities where the brand new Club World Cup will be held next summer, FIFA held the draw for the 8 groups of the final phase of its new "glamorous" competition on Thursday evening (5/12), which will be held from June 15 to July 13, 2025 in 12 major stadiums in the United States.
A year before the 2026 World Cup, which is being held in the
United States, Canada and Mexico, the Club World Cup will be a dress rehearsal for the Americans, even if the majority of the matches will be held in 10 stadiums on the East Coast, with the other 2 being located in Seattle and Los Angeles.
Gianni Infantino and the advantages
The ceremony began with a speech by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who analyzed the advantages of the new competition, while then together with Brazilian Ronaldo (the “phenomenon”) they presented the fancy trophy that the winner of the Club World Cup will lift on the evening of July 13, 2025.
The draw, which took place in Miami, had several restrictions, including the general principle that no group can have more than one team from the same confederation.
This applied to all confederations except UEFA (Europe), which will be represented by 12 clubs in the tournament. Therefore, four of the eight groups have two European clubs.
However, this isn't the only novelty; fans will be able to enjoy all matches for free via DAZN, a British platform with which FIFA has just signed an agreement.
According to the official announcement, broadcasts will be available in different languages, providing greater accessibility for football lovers around the globe.
Furthermore, for scheduling reasons, both US clubs, Inter Miami and Seattle Sounders, have been automatically seeded in fourth place in Groups 1 and 2 respectively.
Inter Miami will play the tournament's opening match at Miami's Hard Rock Stadium, while the Sounders will open their campaign at Seattle's Lumen Field immediately afterwards.
PSG and Atlético
The draw highlights were Paris Saint-Germain's clash with Atletico Madrid in Group 2 (along with Botafogo and Seattle Sounders), as well as the battles that Bayern Munich will face Benfica in Group 3 (with Boca Juniors and Oakland City), as well as Manchester City's clash with Juventus in Group 7. Lionel Messi's Inter Miami was drawn in Group 1 with Porto, Al Ahly (Egypt) and Palmeiras.
The opening match of the competition will be the match between Messi's Inter Miami and Egypt's Al Ahly, on June 15 in Miami.
The 16 clubs that finish in the top two places in each of the 8 groups will qualify for the round of 16 to the final, scheduled to be held at the MetLife Stadium in New York, where the 2026 World Cup will be held.
THE 8 GROUPS OF THE 2025 CLUB WORLD CUP:
GROUP 1: Palmeiras (Brazil), Porto (Portugal), Al Ahly (Egypt), Inter Miami (USA)
GROUP 2: Paris Saint-Germain (France), Atletico Madrid (Spain), Botafogo (Brazil), Seattle Sounders (USA)
GROUP 3: Bayern Munich (Germany), Oakland City (New Zealand), Boca Juniors (Argentina), Benfica (Portugal)
4th GROUP: Flamengo (Brazil), Esperance (Tunisia), Chelsea (England), Leon (Mexico)
5th GROUP: River Plate (Argentina), Urawa Red Diamonds (Japan), Monterrey (Mexico), Inter (Italy)
6th GROUP: Fluminense (Brazil), Dortmund (Germany), Ulsan HD (South Korea), Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa)
7th GROUP: Manchester City (England), Wydad Casablanca (Morocco), Al Ain (United Arab Emirates), Juventus (Italy)
8th GROUP: Real Madrid (Spain), Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia), Pachuca (Mexico), Salzburg (Austria)
Manos Staramopoulos
Journalist and Analyst of International Football and Affairs
Chief Editor English Zone of Discoveryfootball.com
Athens (Greece)
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