Football
FIFA Club World Cup 2025: Exploring the Exciting New Format
The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup will be its 21st edition, as one of the leading international football competitions organised by FIFA.
The competition in 2025 will take place from June to July in the United States but will differ from those before it, boasting a new format to up the ante and increase excitement for football fans worldwide.
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Evolution of the FIFA Club World Cup
The FIFA Club World Cup in the past has been an annual event which took place every winter since its return from hiatus in 2005. However, FIFA president Gianni Infantino suggested an initial expansion of the Club World Cup to 32 teams back in 2016, which has since taken shape and the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup will be the first edition of this exciting new format which involves more teams, and a bigger stage for teams to perform on.
In the past, this tournament has struggled to attract interest from the biggest teams in Europe and has therefore not been a priority for teams, however, the expansion is looking to target these teams and increase the competitive nature of the tournament, making it bigger and better than ever before.
The current format of the tournament involves seven teams competing for the title at venues within the host nation over a period of two weeks; the winners of that year’s AFC Champions League (Asia), CAF Champions League (Africa), CONCACAF Champions Cup (North, Central America and Caribbean), CONMEBOL Libertadores (South America), OFC Champions League (Oceania) and UEFA Champions League (Europe), along with the host nation’s national champions, participate in a straight knock-out tournament.
FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Overview
There was initial backlash after the suggested expansion due to the raised concerns around player welfare considering the already congested playing calendar, however, FIFA believes that the adopting a larger gap between tournaments should make this competition a bigger spectacle and more worthy of the effort from teams across the globe.
The United States has been confirmed as hosts for 2025 in June-July and will mark the start of the new format, so there are high expectations to be met, setting the tone for the future of the competition in order to win over the critics.
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Teams Participating
Thus far, only 13 teams have been confirmed for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup:
AFC (4 slots)
- Al-Hilal (Saudi)
- Urawa Red Diamonds (Japan)
- TBD (Winners of 2023-24 AFC Champions League)
- TBD (Best eligible team in AFC 4-year ranking)
CAF (4 slots)
- Al Ahly (Egypt)
- Wydad Casablanca (Morroco)
- TBD (Winners of 2023-24 CAF Champions League)
- TBD (Best eligible team in the CAF 4-year ranking)
CONCACAF (4 slots)
- Monterrey (Mexico)
- Seattle Sounders FC (US)
- Leon (Mexico)
- TBD (Winners of the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup)
CONMEBOL (6 slots)
- Palmeiras (Brazil)
- Flamengo (Brazil)
- Fluminense (Brazil)
- TBD (Winners of 2024 Copa Libertadores)
- TBD (Best eligible team in CONMEBOL 4-year ranking)
- TBD (Second-best eligible team in CONMEBOL 4-year ranking)
OFC (1 slot)
- TBD (Best OFC Champions League winner in OFC 4-year ranking)
UEFA (12 slots)
- Chelsea (Winners of the 2020-21 UEFA Champions League)
- Real Madrid (Winners of the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League)
- Manchester City (Winners of the 2022-23 UEFA Champions League)
- TBD (Winners of the 2023-24 UEFA Champions League)
- TBD (Best eligible team in UEFA 4-year ranking)
- TBD (Second-best eligible team in UEFA 4-year ranking)
- TBD (Third-best eligible team in UEFA 4-year ranking)
- TBD (Fourth-best eligible team in UEFA 4-year ranking)
- TBD (Fifth-best eligible team in UEFA 4-year ranking)
- TBD (Sixth-best eligible team in UEFA 4-year ranking)
- TBD (Seventh-best eligible team in UEFA 4-year ranking)
- TBD (Eighth-best eligible team in UEFA 4-year ranking)
CONCACAF
- TBD
The tournament will feature the new format which will consist of the 32 teams being divided into eight groups of four teams with the top two teams in each group qualifying to the knockout stage. It will follow the same format that the FIFA World Cup has used between 1998 and 2022.
Key Dates and Schedule
The important dates leading up to the tournament will be the various competitions listed above that teams will need to win in order to land themselves a spot in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. This allows the best teams across the globe from the years 2021-25 to battle it out like never before.
New Format Unveiled
The competition’s old format saw the host nation’s national league champions play the winners of the OFC Champions League battle it out in a playoff, with the winner moving into the quarter-final round with the Winners of the AFC Champions League, the CONCACAF Champions League, and the CAF Champions League. From there, the two winners move ahead to the semi-finals with the winners of the Copa Libertadores and the UEFA Champions League winners. The winners of the semis then move into the final where one of the teams will be crowned as champion.
The reason why the new and more familiar format has been suggested is to remove any bias before the tournament kicks off, and starts all the teams on an even playing field with a more traditional group stage entry into the competition.
It will now follow the same format as the World Cup and therefore will see each team play each other once, with the leaders of the group progressing into the knockout round of 16, all the way to the final.
This will be extraordinary to watch for the fans, as they’ll see European giants face-off against smaller teams from around the world in games that would never usually happen, which is why fans should get excited about the 2025 edition of this tournament.
Fan Experience
For fans worldwide, the opportunity to visit the US to watch this tournament would be truly special and an amazing experience. Despite it being a hit for football fans as it’s more football on our TV screens, it has had a slightly more negative response from some members of the footballing community.
Reactions from the Football Community
Ex-Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher believes that the players are being over-used and “treated like cattle” and that European clubs should boycott this new format. With what feels like a never-ending supply of money pumped into the game, the natural next-step is creating more tournaments and competitions which result in the players being overworked purely for fan entertainment.
The proposal has divided opinions within the football community, so eyes will be on this for the next year or so to see how it pans out.
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Top Betting Strategies for FIFA World Club World Cup 2025
Betting on football matches involves a combination of strategy, research, and a good understanding of the game. Keep in mind that betting always involves a degree of risk, and there are no guaranteed outcomes. Here are some tips to consider if you’re thinking about betting on football matches:
Researching Teams and Players
Stay informed about team performance, player injuries, and recent form. Consider factors like home and away records, head-to-head statistics, and recent team news.
Understand Odds and markets
Learn how odds work and what they represent. Odds reflect the probability of a particular outcome happening. Odds can be presented in different formats (decimal, fractional, or moneyline), so make sure you understand the format used by your bookmaker.
Bankroll Management: Set a budget for your betting activities and stick to it. Avoid chasing losses or betting more than you can afford to lose. Consider using a small percentage of your betting bankroll for each wager.
Types of Bets: Understand the various types of bets available, such as straight bets, accumulators, over/under, and handicap bets. Different bets have different risk and reward profiles, so choose the ones that align with your strategy.
