The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup will be the 21st edition of the competition. It first took place back in 2000, when just eight teams competed in Brazil. It’s fair to say the tournament didn’t set the world alight and, despite being planned as an annual event, it didn’t reappear until 2005, when a mere six clubs got involved. There followed a Club World Cup every year until 2023 (when Manchester City won in Saudi Arabia).
There was no edition in 2024 as the format and number of teams involved underwent a massive overhaul. This included an expansion to 32 teams (it usually only featured seven) and also the move to it taking place every four years instead of annually.
In this article, we’ll explain which teams will feature in the 2025 Club World Cup and how they qualified. We’ll then outline the current structure and look at the draw for the tournament, which took place on 5th December 2024.
Which Teams Will Compete at the Club World Cup in 2025?
As mentioned, 32 clubs have been invited to the 2025 tournament, which will take place in the United States of America. The slots in the tournament were allocated based on what the FIFA Council described as a “set of objective metrics and criteria”. The six continental governing bodies were given the following slots:
- Asian Football Confederation (AFC) – Four Slots
- Confederation of African Football (CAF) – Four Slots
- Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) – Four Slots
- Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (CONMEBOL) – Six Slots
- Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) – One Slot
- Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) – 12 Slots
The mathematicians or eagle-eyed among you will have realised that we’ve only accounted for 31 slots. That’s because the hosts USA were also given an additional slot. Here’s the full line-up of the teams involved in the tournament, their confederation and how they qualified.
| Team (Country) | Confederation | Qualification Method |
|---|---|---|
| Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia) | AFC | Winners of the 2021 AFC Champions League |
| Urawa Red Diamonds (Japan) | AFC | Winners of the 2022 AFC Champions League |
| Al Ain (UAE) | AFC | Winners of the 2023–24 AFC Champions League |
| Ulsan HD (South Korea) | AFC | AFC 4-year ranking |
| Al Ahly (Egypt) | CAF | Winners of the 2020–21, 2022–23, and 2023–24 CAF Champions League |
| Wydad AC (Morocco) | CAF | Winners of the 2021–22 CAF Champions League |
| Espérance de Tunis (Tunisia) | CAF | CAF 4-year ranking |
| Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa) | CAF | CAF 4-year ranking |
| Monterrey (Mexico) | CONCACAF | Winners of the 2021 CONCACAF Champions League |
| Seattle Sounders FC (USA) | CONCACAF | Winners of the 2022 CONCACAF Champions League |
| León (Mexico) | CONCACAF | Winners of the 2023 CONCACAF Champions League |
| Pachuca (Mexico) | CONCACAF | Winners of the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup |
| Palmeiras (Brazil) | CONMEBOL | Winners of the 2021 Copa Libertadores |
| Flamengo (Brazil) | CONMEBOL | Winners of the 2022 Copa Libertadores |
| Fluminense (Brazil) | CONMEBOL | Winners of the 2023 Copa Libertadores |
| Botafogo (Brazil) | CONMEBOL | Winners of the 2024 Copa Libertadores |
| River Plate (Argentina) | CONMEBOL | CONMEBOL 4-year ranking |
| Boca Juniors (Argentina) | CONMEBOL | CONMEBOL 4-year ranking |
| Auckland City (New Zealand) | OFC | Best OFC Champions League winners in the OFC 4-year ranking[note 2] |
| Chelsea (England) | UEFA | Winners of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League |
| Real Madrid (Spain) | UEFA | Winners of the 2021–22 and 2023–24 UEFA Champions League |
| Manchester City (England) | UEFA | Winners of the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League |
| Bayern Munich (Germany) | UEFA | UEFA 4-year ranking |
| Paris Saint-Germain (France) | UEFA | UEFA 4-year ranking |
| Inter Milan (Italy) | UEFA | UEFA 4-year ranking |
| Porto (Portugal) | UEFA | UEFA 4-year ranking |
| Benfica (Portugal) | UEFA | UEFA 4-year ranking |
| Borussia Dortmund (Germany) | UEFA | UEFA 4-year ranking |
| Juventus (Italy) | UEFA | UEFA 4-year ranking |
| Atlético Madrid (Spain) | UEFA | UEFA 4-year ranking |
| Red Bull Salzburg (Austria) | UEFA | UEFA 4-year ranking |
| Inter Miami CF (USA) | CONCACAF (Host Slot) | Winners of the 2024 MLS Supporters’ Shield |
Tournament Structure
Unlike in some previous editions of the tournament, when teams joined at various stages, the structure of the 2025 renewal is straightforward. The 32 teams have been drawn into eight groups of four and each side faces the other three from their group. As you would expect, the winner and runner-up from each group progress to the Round of 16, then it’s a straight knockout from there (quarters, semis, final).
Club World Cup 2025 Groups
The eight groups of FIFA Club World Cup 2025 are locked in 🔐🏆🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/OxVpMXfTMx
— OneFootball (@OneFootball) December 5, 2024
Here is how the eight groups line up for the tournament.
Group A
- Palmeiras
- Porto
- Al Ahly
- Inter Miami
Group B
- Paris Saint-Germain
- Atletico Madrid
- Botafogo
- Seattle Sounders
Group C
- Bayern Munich
- Auckland City
- Boca Juniors
- Benfica
Group D
- Flamengo
- Espérance de Tunis
- Chelsea
- León
Group E
- River Plate
- Urawa Red Diamonds
- Monterrey
- Inter Milan
Group F
- Fluminense
- Borussia Dortmund
- Ulsan HD
- Mamelodi Sundowns
Group G
- Manchester City
- Wydad AC
- Al Ain
- Juventus
Group H
- Real Madrid
- Al Hilal
- Pachuca
- Red Bull Salzburg
Who Will Win the 2025 Club World Cup?
Given that it’s a new format and 32 teams are competing this time around, predicting the winner is not as easy as it was for previous editions. If the bookies are to be believed, the eventual victor will almost certainly come from Europe. The top nine in the betting are all from UEFA, with Real Madrid and Manchester City vying for favouritism at odds of around 4/1. They’re followed in the betting by Bayern Munich, Chelsea, and Inter Milan. The most likely non-European winners – according to the odds – are Brazilian duo Flamengo (33/1) or Palmeiras (40/1), while Auckland City are the massive outsiders at 1,000/1.
For FIFA, the new style of Club World Cup will be a big test of whether it can finally capture the hearts and minds of football fans across the globe, especially in Europe. And in a summer that doesn’t have either a World Cup or a Euros tournament, the Club World Cup might finally burst into the public consciousness like never before.