Club World Cup: Everything you need to know about the revamped tournament

This summer’s revamped and expanded FIFA Club World Cup will see 32 teams from across the world compete across 11 cities in the United States.

With it being a first-of-its-kind tournament, there are many questions to answer as intrigue builds over how it will play out.

The first match is on June 15, so it’s time to get up to speed with the talking points, including the $1billion (£750million) prize pot, how Lionel Messi is playing, and the fans travelling potentially thousands of miles to watch their teams compete in the group stage.

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What’s the first thing I need to know?

Let’s start with the competition itself. The Club World Cup is a 32-team tournament organised by FIFA, football’s world governing body. All six of FIFA’s confederations are represented — 12 clubs from UEFA (Europe), six from CONMEBOL (South America), five from Concacaf (North America), four from AFC (Asia), four from CAF (Africa) and one from OFC (Oceania).

Brazil is the country with the most participating teams (four: Botafogo, Flamengo, Fluminense and Palmeiras), with the U.S. the only other nation providing more than two sides (three: Inter Miami, Los Angeles FC and Seattle Sounders).

Teams have been drawn into eight groups of four, with each side playing their group opponents once. The top two of each group will progress to the round of 16, and from there it will be single-match knockouts to the final.

We have put together all the groups and a full fixture list in one handy article.

Are these the best club teams in the world?

FIFA’s two-club limit on teams from a single country — except if more than two clubs from the same country had won their leading continental tournament, as was the case with the Brazilian teams, and ‘hosts’ Inter Miami — meant some of Europe’s more renowned sides, such as La Liga’s champions Barcelona and Premier League winners Liverpool, missed out even though they were ranked higher on the pathway than, for example, Austria’s Red Bull Salzburg.

Some of the world’s best-known clubs are, however, playing, including Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich and River Plate.

What do I need to know about the lesser-known teams?

Look out for Auckland City of New Zealand, the only representatives from the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC). They have won the region’s Champions League 11 times in 14 years, but can they compete with global stars?

Botafogo from Brazil could be an interesting watch. They won the Copa Libertadores in 2024 but are close to an agreement to sell three players (striker Igor Jesus, left-back Cuiabano, and centre-back Jair Cunha) to Nottingham Forest.

Groups A, D, E, and F only have one European team, so teams from another continent will progress to the round of 16 from these groups. In Group H, Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia) and Pachuca (Mexico) should challenge Salzburg (Austria) for second place behind Real Madrid.

Who are the favourites?

Paris Saint-Germain will be looking to add to their treble of the Champions League, Ligue 1, and Coupe de France this season. The way PSG demolished Inter Milan 5-0 in the Champions League final makes them the form European team.

Real Madrid, with five titles, won the most Club World Cups in its previous format, and with their squad — Kylian Mbappe, Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior, to name just three — they will be one of the teams to watch, at least.

Manchester City, though below par in the Premier League, should be dangerous opponents under Pep Guardiola, especially as the team’s form improved slightly towards the end of their league campaign.

Most of the European teams are expected to progress through the group stage, but Flamengo lead Brazil’s Serie A after 11 games and could be a threat. Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa) reached the final of the CAF Champions League this campaign.

Talking of Bellingham and Mbappe, who else will be playing?

Lionel Messi is set to feature, but the inclusion of his Inter Miami team has raised eyebrows.

In the past, the host nation’s top league champions were awarded a bonus qualification spot as ‘hosts’. Inter Miami qualified after winning the 2024 Supporters’ Shield, awarded to the MLS team with the best regular-season record, but they were not the national champions in the U.S. The winners of the MLS Cup, a play-off tournament based on league rankings, are typically regarded as the true winners. Messi and Inter Miami were knocked out of the 2024 play-offs in the first round by Atlanta United, with LA Galaxy beating New York Red Bulls in the final.

Miami’s inclusion means Messi and former Barcelona team-mates Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets, and Jordi Alba are set to play.

With Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr contract coming to an end, the 40-year-old posted a cryptic message on his social media last week: “This chapter is over. The story? Still being written.”

FIFA president Gianni Infantino suggested Ronaldo may play for one of the teams at the Club World Cup in an interview with YouTuber IShowSpeed, but the Portugal forward has confirmed he will not be taking part.

Neymar is another global football icon whose contract expires this summer, with his future at Santos uncertain. Clubs have a special transfer window between June 1 and June 10 to add players before the opening game kicks off in Miami on June 14.

Two of the world’s best strikers, Harry Kane (Bayern Munich) and Erling Haaland (Manchester City), will feature, too.

Are the new signings playing for their clubs?

Real Madrid will have new manager Xabi Alonso in the dugout, and former Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold is set to make his Madrid debut after they paid a €10million (£8.4m; $11.4m) fee for him to join before the tournament.

Liam Delap could make his debut for Chelsea after the club signed him for £30m from Ipswich Town.

Inter Milan will have a new manager, expected to be former defender Cristian Chivu, after Simone Inzaghi left for Al Hilal.

Other deals could see Jonathan Tah feature for Bayern Munich and Jorginho for Flamengo.

What happens if a player leaves mid-competition?

As The Athletic’s Steve Madeley has explained, standard player contracts in Europe typically run from July 1 to June 30, meaning clubs involved in the Club World Cup could find themselves with players leaving as free agents during the tournament.

For this reason, there is a mid-tournament registration window from June 27 to July 3. This will allow clubs to replace out-of-contract players with players who might have joined at the end of their contracts elsewhere, or been bought from other clubs after the end of the extra transfer window.

As part of the mid-tournament window, clubs can add two extra players, potentially taking their squad size from 35 up to 37. A maximum of six changes to their squad overall are permitted.

For a new player to take part in a Club World Cup match, his club must have registered him and notified FIFA at least 48 hours before kick-off. Players cannot play for more than one club in the tournament.

How did the teams qualify?

Through winning continental tournaments (CAF, AFC, UEFA, Concacaf, CONMEBOL) or a ranking pathway from 2020-21 up to this season.

At the end of May, LAFC won a play-off game against Club America to replace Club Leon, who were removed for failing to meet FIFA’s criteria on multi-club ownership.

UEFA’s 12 places were decided by Champions League performances between the 2020-21 and 2023-24 seasons, so the winners through these seasons — Chelsea, Manchester City and Real Madrid — all qualified. Other European teams qualified through UEFA rankings over the four seasons.

What stadiums are hosting?

The opening game will be held at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium on June 14 and the final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, where the 2026 World Cup final will be held, on July 13.

All 63 matches will be held in the United States, a year before the country co-hosts the 2026 World Cup alongside Canada and Mexico. The 12 host stadiums are:

Atlanta, Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Charlotte, Bank of America Stadium
Cincinnati, TQL Stadium
Los Angeles, Rose Bowl Stadium
Miami, Hard Rock Stadium
Nashville, Geodis Park
New Jersey, MetLife Stadium
Orlando, Camping World Stadium
Orlando, Inter&Co Stadium
Philadelphia, Lincoln Financial Field
Seattle, Lumen Field
Washington, DC, Audi Field

The Concacaf Gold Cup, which is also being hosted in the U.S. between June 14 and July 6, will overlap with the Club World Cup.

Which fans have the longest journeys?

Committed Auckland City fans will travel more than 17,000 miles to reach TQL Stadium (Cincinnati), Inter&Co Stadium (Orlando), and Geodis Park (Nashville,) then home again, unless they progress to the knockout stages.

From the United Arab Emirates, Al Ain will play two of their group games at Audi Field (Washington, DC) and one at Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta), amounting to around 15,000 miles to go to all three group games and a return trip to the UAE.

By contrast, two of Inter Miami’s games are in Miami at the Hard Rock Stadium, with the other in Atlanta.

Have there been any controversies?

Last June saw two of Europe’s biggest players’ unions, the English Professional Footballers’ Association and its French counterparts, the Union Nationale des Footballeurs Professionnels, join forces to launch a case against FIFA, arguing the rights of its members were being violated under European Union (EU) laws.

In an unprecedented move in October, FIFPro — the global players’ union — and the European Leagues, which represents 39 leagues in 33 countries, filed a complaint to the European Commission, an executive branch of the EU, to protect the welfare of their players.

FIFA argues that its new tournament aligns with unchanged attempts to “protect the overall interests of world football at all levels of the game” and has accused major European leagues opposed to the Club World Cup of acting with “hypocrisy and self-interest”.

FIFA has consistently stressed that the football calendar, one that will run until 2030, was decided in consultation with all stakeholders, including player unions, before it was signed off.

FIFPro, among others, disagrees. It sees no room for the Club World Cup to be played every four years, especially given the expansion of other leading competitions, including the Champions League and World Cup, which will be a 48-team event for the first time next summer.

The Athletic has reported concerns within the U.S. government about the prospect of hundreds of thousands of visa applications before the Club World Cup, and many more for the 2026 World Cup.

Philip Buckingham

How do you get tickets? Has it sold out?

General sale tickets are sold, using dynamic pricing that can fluctuate up or down, via Ticketmaster. Some tickets are available for fans of the participating clubs at FIFA.com/tickets.

The Athletic reported that FIFA’s quest to fill stadiums is floundering and the organisation has dropped the price of tickets, having unveiled a new tier of lower pricing for games during the tournament.

In a statement to The Athletic, FIFA confirmed: “New batches of more affordable match tickets have been released this week.” The organisation did not clarify what this new bracket refers to, but tickets on FIFA’s partner Ticketmaster are now showing up as vastly reduced compared to the lowest prices that had been available to fans.

During the group stages, Argentine side River Plate against Japanese team Urawa Red Diamonds appears to be the lowest-priced ticket, selling for as low as $24 for the match at Lumen Field in Seattle at 3pm ET on June 17.

Real Madrid’s group games are proving to be popular. No tickets are available for less than $132 to watch their game against Mexican side Pachuca (in Charlotte), while prices start at $310 against Saudi Arabian team Al Hilal (in Miami) and $253 against Red Bull Salzburg (in Philadelphia).

For the semi-finals, the cheapest tickets on general sale cost about $300, which is substantially down on FIFA’s original aims a few months ago. The best-priced ticket to the final is $538, but thousands of seats remain available.

Adam Crafton

What’s the prize money?

There is a $1billion pot to be shared.

European clubs will take most of this. There is $525m on offer for participation alone, with Europe’s 12 competing clubs taking home $306m (58 per cent).

They will get between $12.8m and $38.2m in a “ranking based on sporting and commercial criteria” for participation, with the six South American clubs getting a flat fee of $15.2m. Auckland City, the only Oceania club, will receive $3.58m, with the rest, from North and Central America, Africa and Asia, receiving $9.55m for qualifying.

The remaining $475m will be shared based on performance. Having a perfect tournament on the way to the title will amount to $87.62m.

Part of this sporting performance pot, the final will become the most lucrative game in football, with $40m going to the winners and $30m to the losers. This $70m prize exceeds the $47m (€43.5m) on offer in the UEFA Champions League final.

Why did the trophy make headlines?

The trophy, which Infantino unveiled alongside U.S. President Donald Trump, was designed by FIFA and jewellery brand Tiffany & Co.

Infantino’s name is inscribed twice on the trophy, which displays the names of all 211 of FIFA’s member nations.

It consists of a central disc and three outer rings, meaning it can be displayed as a flat shield or opened with a key to reveal “a multifaceted and orbital structure”.

How to watch

All 63 matches will be broadcast free around the world on the online platform of DAZN, which struck a deal worth $1billion with FIFA in December for the global rights.

In the United Kingdom, Channel 5 will show 23 of the 63 matches live following a sublicensing deal with DAZN. These will include four round-of-16 matches, two quarter-final games, one semi-final and the final.

(Top photo: Brennan Asplen/Getty Images)