The 32 qualifiers found out their first-round opponents for the new-look tournament, to be held in the U.S. in 2025
The draw for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup took place on Thursday, pitting some of the most famous names in football against one another in a 32-team tournament that will get under way in Miami next June.
The European contingent will be led by superpowers such as Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, while South America will be represented by the last four Copa Libertadores winners, Brazilian quartet Botafogo, Fluminense, Flamengo and Palmeiras, as well as Argentine heavyweights River Plate and Boca Juniors.
Elsewhere, Al Ahly have long been a dominant force in Africa, Ail Ain have achieved great things in Asia, Pachuca are the top dogs in CONCACAF, while there's still no stopping Auckland City in Asia. Lionel Messi will also be involved with Inter Miami, but Seattle Sounders will also be flying the flag for the host nation.
Below, GOAL runs through the big winners and losers of the draw…
GettyWINNER: Real Madrid
Let's face it: Real Madrid need a break after a rotten few weeks for Kylian Mbappe & Co. – and they got one in Thursday's draw.
Al-Hilal and Pachuca are two fine sides, with the former having won the Saudi Pro League without losing a game last season while the latter are continental champions of North America, and both will be counting down the days until they get to have a crack at Los Blancos.
However, Red Bull Salzburg were the Pot Two team that everybody in the tournament wanted to draw – and Madrid got them, making their path to the knockout stage significantly easier.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesLOSER: Paris Saint-Germain
Luis Enrique has enough problems to worry about without concerning himself with a competition that takes place next summer. The Spaniard's primary focus right now, in fact, will be just ensuring that he's still in the Paris Saint-Germain hotseat by the time the Club World Cup rolls around.
It's clear, though, that the perennial French champions are taking the competition very seriously. President Nasser Al-Khelaifi was even in attendance for the draw – and it's fair to say he won't be too happy with how it went.
Drawing Atletico Madrid was bad enough for PSG, who were beaten at home by the Rojiblancos in the Champions League just a few weeks ago, but getting Botafogo as their Pot Three team was an absolute disaster. The Brazilians have just been crowned Copa Libertadores champions for the first time in their history and are perfectly poised to win the domestic title this weekend, too.
On current form, then, it's not too hard to envisage a PSG team that might not even make it through to the play-off round of the Champions League going on to suffer a humiliating group-stage exit at the inaugural Club World Cup.
(C)Getty ImagesWINNER: Lionel Messi
Inter Miami are obviously lucky just to be involved in the Club World Cup, given they infamously failed to win this year's MLS Cup after tearing it up during the regular season, so it's crazy that they've now got a serious shot at making the last 16 – which many thought impossible before Thursday's draw.
However, due to the many constraints involved in the process, Miami managed to avoid all of the strongest sides and ended up in Group A alongside Palmeiras, Porto and Al Ahly.
Consequently, Messi's got an unexpected opportunity to make a real mark on what could be the last significant club tournament he plays in before calling time on his illustrious career.
AFPLOSER: Auckland City
Obviously part of the appeal of the Club World Cup for the likes of Auckland City is getting to play against some of the biggest clubs and most famous players in football. In that sense, the New Zealanders will be delighted after being bracketed with Bayern Munich, Benfica and Boca Juniors.
At the same time, though, it's also not hard to fear for Auckland. After all we're talking about a team that was recently hammered 6-2 by Al Ain in the FIFA Intercontinental Cup. They could genuinely suffer some even worse beatings in the United States.
