In June 2025, the first edition of the new Club World Cup will be held, to be played every four years with 32 participating teams.
Europe is entitled to 12 spots, and the current Champions League will contribute to the allocation of these positions. Inzaghi, during the post-Salzburg press conference, celebrated Inter’s qualification, even though the criteria have yet to be officially confirmed:
‘A tremendous satisfaction for the journey we’ve made, we’ve earned it, and we’ll play it in the best possible way’, said the Inter coach after the game
THE NEW CLUB WORLD CUP
- The new format had already been officially announced last March, but the start of the new Champions League has once again put the spotlight on the 2025 Club World Cup. The reason is simple: for European teams, the access criteria to the 2025 Club World Cup takes into account the four-year span of seasons from 2021 to 2024.
WHEN WILL THE NEW CLUB WORLD CUP BE PLAYED
- The tournament will be held between June and July 2025, just like the World Cup for national teams.
WHERE WILL THE NEW CLUB WORLD CUP BE PLAYED
The first edition of the Club World Cup, scheduled for the summer of 2025, will be in the United States. The specific stadiums and cities are yet to be determined.
WHAT THE CLUB WORLD CUP WILL BE LIKE FROM 2025
It will have a quadrennial format, just like the World Cup that national teams typically play. There will be 32 participating teams, initially divided into eight groups of four.
THE RULES OF THE NEW CLUB WORLD CUP
With 32 teams divided into 8 groups of 4, the top 2 in each group will qualify for the knockout stages. From the round of 16 onwards, it will be direct elimination matches until the final that will determine the club team as the world champion.
HOW MANY SPOTS FOR EACH CONFEDERATION?
UEFA (Europe): 12 spots
CONMEBOL (South America): 6 spots
AFC (Asia): 4 spots
CAF (Africa): 4 spots
CONCACAF (Central and North America): 4 spots
OFC (Oceania): 1 spot
Host Country: 1 spot
CRITERIA FOR THE 12 UEFA SPOTS
4 spots reserved for the winners of the last 4 editions of the Champions League
8 spots based on the ranking in the last four years (scores only refer to results in the Champions League)
HOW MANY ITALIAN TEAMS WILL GO TO THE CLUB WORLD CUP?
- Italy, like all other countries, cannot send more than two teams to the World Cup. The only exception is if more than two clubs from the same country win the Champions League during the four-year period (this option is only valid for the Premier League if a different English club from Manchester City and Chelsea wins the next Champions League).
WHICH ITALIAN TEAMS WILL GO TO THE CLUB WORLD CUP?
- While waiting for the official criteria, and considering the ranking criteria, one spot would go to Inter, the finalist of the 2023 edition. Inter already secured the spot with a qualification to the Champions League round of 16.
- The other spot, currently, would go to Juventus, but the absence of Juventus from the Champions League will prevent them from increasing their ranking coefficient, unlike Milan and Napoli.
- The situation is more complicated for Lazio, who would need to win the Champions League to qualify.
THE EUROPEAN TEAMS THAT WOULD CURRENTLY GO TO THE WORLD CUP
Manchester City*
Chelsea*
Real Madrid*
Bayern Munich
Paris Saint-Germain
INTER
Porto
Borussia Dortmund
Benfica
Atletico Madrid
JUVENTUS
CURRENT RANKING BASED ON POINTS*
Bayern Munich – 97 points
INTER – 72 points
PSG – 70 points
Porto – 59 points
Borussia Dortmund – 59 points
RB Leipzig – 59 points
Atletico Madrid – 53 points
Benfica – 49 points
Barcelona – 48 points
JUVENTUS – 47 points
Sevilla – 42 points
Salzburg – 39 points
Ajax – 39 points
MILAN – 39 points
NAPOLI – 34 points
Shakhtar – 33 points
LAZIO – 26 points
*The English teams are not included in the ranking because their slots are filled (Manchester City and Chelsea are already qualified).
TEAMS ALREADY QUALIFIED
Manchester City (Champions 2023 winner)
Real Madrid (Champions 2022 winner)
Chelsea (Champions 2021 winner)
Fluminense (Libertadores 2023 winner)
Flamengo (Libertadores 2022 winner)
Palmeiras (Libertadores 2021 winner)
Wydad Casablanca (CAF C. League 2022 winner)
Al Ahly (CAF C. League 2021 winner)
Monterrey (CONCACAF C. League 2021 winner)
Seattle Sounders (C. Champions League 2022 winner)
Leon (CONCACAF C. League 2023 winner)
Al Hilal (AFC C. League 2021 winner)
Urawa Reds (AFC C. League 2022 winner)
