If you’re a soccer enthusiast, you probably have the upcoming FIFA World Cup for 2026 already on your radar, which will be hosted by various cities in the United States. But ahead of the global competition set to rock the biggest stadiums in North America, there’s an all-new competition FIFA’s preparing as we head into the new year. Enter: the FIFA Club World Cup 2025.
This is different from the World Cup we all know and love in that these won’t be teams coming together for the sake of their countries … but rather specific club teams that have some of the best records in the world. For example, in the 2024 World Cup, we saw Argentinian and French soccer legends Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe play against each other for each of their respective nations. But in a competition like next year’s, we would have seen them playing on the same team at a global scale, as they both were actually teammates on the French club team Paris Saint-Germain at the time.
So, what happens when the world’s top soccer clubs face off on U.S. soil for the very first time? Spoiler: It’s going to be legendary!
The FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Is Coming to the U.S.
According to the official FIFA website, the new club competition “will bring together the most successful club sides from each of the six international confederations: AFC, CAF, Concacaf, CONMEBOL, OFC and UEFA.”
Those are the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), Confederation Africaine de Football (CAF), the Confederation of North America, Central America, and the Caribbean (Concacaf), the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL), Oceania Football Confederation (OFC), and the Union of European Football Association (UEFA).
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It’s set to take place between June and July of 2025, in the way we would normally see a traditional FIFA World Cup or even the Summer Olympics. There’s a whole list of cities in the U.S. that will be hosting the games, which will also be a practice run for the 2026 global competition, as echoed by Forbes.
As posted to FIFA’s official X account, those cities include Miami, Orlando, Los Angeles, Seattle, Atlanta, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Nashville, Washington D.C., and New York City. So chances are, if you live in or close to one of these cities, a big competition might be headed your way. Plus, this could also mean cheaper tickets to see some of your favorite soccer players live and in color, which might be tougher to make happen for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Which Teams Are Competing?
The full list of teams can be found on FIFA’s official website, but some of the most notable club names on the list include Real Madrid C.F., Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City, CF Monterrey, and FC Porto.
What will be really interesting about this year’s competition is that some American clubs will actually get a chance to fight against some of the biggest club teams in the world. This will allow the U.S. a more diversified and inclusive opportunity into the global football/soccer field. Those American teams that have already qualified are the Seattle Sounders FC and, most notably, Inter Miami CF – which scooped up the 2024 FIFA World Cup Champion and now Major League Soccer MVP Lionel Messi. (You probably had never heard of Inter Miami CF before Messi joined in 2023, as it was a flailing team that English soccer star David Beckham started and invested in back around 2018.)
Aside from American teams, multiple teams from Latin American and other parts of the world that hardly get as much attention as European players in the traditional world cup will have their chance to shine too.
As Oliver Torres, a midfielder for Mexico’s CF Monterrey, told FIFA: “I wanted to play against teams I had never played before. The Mexican teams and the South American teams maybe don’t have so many references in Europe, but I think they are going to surprise at the World Cup. There is a lot of talent and a lot of desire to do well.”
Even Gordon Watson, the general manager Auckland City (New Zealand’s qualifying club team, told Forbes, “While we’re excited about the opportunity, we’re also aware of the significant gap between our region and the rest of the world. We aim to represent Oceania with quality both on and off the pitch as we prepare for this truly global event.”
How is the tournament organized?
There are eight main groups of teams that will play against one another before driving up the ranks of the competition. Those groups are labelled from Groups A-H.
Here’s a full list of who’s playing who below:
- Group A: SE Palmeiras, FC Porto, Al Ahly FC, Inter Miami CF
- Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atlético de Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle Sounders FC
- Group C: FC Bayern München, Auckland City FC, CA Boca Juniors, SL Benfica
- Group D: CR Flamengo, Espérance Sportive de Tunis, Chelsea FC, Club León
- Group E: CA River Plate, Urawa Red Diamonds, CF Monterrey, FC Internazionale Milano
- Group F: Fluminense FC, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan HD, Mamelodi Sundowns FC
- Group G: Manchester City, Wydad AC, Al Ain FC, Juventus FC
- Group H: Real Madrid C. F., Al Hilal, CF Pachuca, FC Salzburg
From these matches, the top two teams of each group will then move on to the round of 16, followed by “a direct single-match knockout stage from the round of 16 to the final,” according to FIFA.
There also will not be a third-place playoff, so the stakes are a bit higher to make it to that final round.
Where can I watch the games and where can I buy tickets?
If this already sounds exciting to you, the first phase of ticket sales have actually already started! They began starting December 19th, so buying tickets now would make for a bonus Christmas present or something to look forward to in the new year. These are for the group matches set up in stadiums from the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami all the way to the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. You can buy those tickets at www.fifa.com/tickets, which are expected to go by fast.
Starting prices aren’t too bad for these tickets compared to what we anticipate will be much more expensive for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. They start around $30 (depending on location and the teams playing, of course), and go from there. If you need to think it over, don’t worry – ticket sales will be going on until January 14, 10 p.m. EST.
Can’t Make It? Here’s How to Watch
For those who aren’t at all concerned with actually attending a live game, you can also catch the matches for free on a global streaming platform known as DAZN. Gooaaalll!!
With all that being said, it’s time to get ready for the new year by gearing up for what is set to be a truly interesting and unprecedented match-up in soccer history. We’ll get to see who the real best players are at a club team-level, with some of the best names in the sport playing alongside teammates that have their back.
Plus, whoever wins the shiny, all-new FIFA Club World Cup trophy (made in collaboration with none-other than Tiffany & Co.) will probably get the best photo-op of the year (ooooh, ahhhh).
So, who’s your pick to dominate the field and claim the trophy? Let the countdown to the games begin!
