By Victor Kanayo
World football governing body FIFA named the United States of America as the host of the new and expanded 32-team FIFA Club World Cup scheduled for 2025.
This was revealed after its meeting held by video conference on Friday.
Host Decision
Talking about why and how it arrived at the decision to award the hosting right to USA, FIFA in a statement via its website wrote, “The host selection process took into consideration the infrastructure and service requirements, as well as broader strategic objectives for the tournament.
“The decision was reached based on the United States’ position as a proven leader in staging global events and because it would allow FIFA to maximise synergies with the delivery of the FIFA World Cup 2026, to the benefit of both tournaments and the development of football in the North American region. As a next step, FIFA will engage with the relevant stakeholders to finalise the dates, venues and match schedule of this new tournament.”
“The FIFA Club World Cup 2025 will be the pinnacle of elite professional men’s club football, and with the required infrastructure in place, together with a massive local interest, the United States is the ideal host to kick off this new, global tournament,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
“With some of the world’s top clubs already qualified, fans from every continent will be bringing their passion and energy to the United States in two years’ time for this significant milestone in our mission to make football truly global.”
The slot allocation per confederation and the key principles of access were already confirmed by the FIFA Council earlier this year.
Qualified Clubs So far
UEFA – Chelsea, Real Madrid, Manchester City
AFC – Al Hilal, Urawa Red Diamonds
CAF – Al Ahly, Wydad Athletic Club
CONCACAF – C.F. Monterrey, Seattle Sounders, Club León
CONMEBOL – Palmeiras, Flamengo
Competition Format
According to the organisers, the tournament will have a group phase comprising eight groups of four teams each, with the top two qualifying for the last 16.
