FIFA has confirmed that an expanded Club World Cup will debut in the USA in 2025, as FIFA introduces new competitions to keep the audience glued to their screens during the off-season.
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The tournament will run from 15 June to 3 July 2025. 32 teams will participate in it, with each country allowed only two clubs in the competition.
England’s representatives in the competition will be Manchester City and Chelsea, as they have won the UEFA Champions League in the last four-year cycle.
A third English side, Arsenal, has the chance to qualify for the event if they win the ongoing UCL season, thus the only chance of ending the two-club cap.
The FIFA council, led by Gianni Infantino, met in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Sunday to discuss the schedule of the expanded event. The venues are not decided yet due to a chance of overlapping with the local US club competition. A final decision will be made later.
The European clubs confirmed via the UCL pathway are Real Madrid, Manchester City, and Chelsea, while the clubs confirmed via ranking are Bayern Munich, PSG, Inter, Benfica, and Porto. Four more European sides will be confirmed in the future, with Arsenal having the chance of being one of them.
From South America, Brazilian sides Palmeiras, Flamengo, and Fluminense have qualified as champions, while Asian sides Al Hilal and Urawa Red Diamonds are also through.
Al Ahly and Wydad have similarly qualified from Africa, while Monterrey, Seattle Sounders and Club Leon are through from North America.
Oceania’s Auckland City have sealed progress with no other team in a position to overtake their points tally.
