FIFA Club World Cup 2025: Club World Cup can be a success and the tournament of the future

As usual, the negativity towards a global club competition is entirely predictable

FIFA

13 June 2025, GRNDSTND, by Matt Hooper: I have a dream. The day is Sunday 15 July 2029, the time is approximately 12pm BST and the place is the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia. Martin Odegaard is lifting the FIFA Club World Cup for Arsenal after we have just beaten FC Barcelona to become Champions of the World. Along the way we have topped a group containing River Plate, Real Madrid and Al Ahly, beaten Liverpool in the Round of 16, Paris Saint Germain in the Quarter-Finals, and Chelsea in the Semi-Finals.

My club has just won the Club World Cup. Surely that is every football fan's dream? No?

It used to be the dream of the football fan and footballers to win the FA Cup, then it became the League title, and then the UEFA Champions League. Of course the UEFA Champions League is seen as club football's greatest competition, but it is an inescapable fact that only clubs from Europe play in that. Yes, most of the world's best players play in it, but fans of Boca Juniors cannot see their club compete with those teams in the UEFA Champions League. Now they can see them play in the FIFA Club World Cup, and for me, the Club World Cup will become the premier club tournament in the world, but it will take time and will have to fight against criticism from the usual suspects, mainly the English and their media.

As long as I have been following football there has been negativity towards the old Intercontinental Cup, and the 2000 Club World Championship and beyond, with many media contesting the relevance of global club competition, usually finding some excuse to diminish it. Fans, media and players from around the world have a much different attitude towards the Club World Cup, and you can sense it by watching the build-up to the competition. One of the biggest and most vocal critics of the FIFA Club World Cup has, inevitably, been Jamie Carragher. The Sky Sports and CBS pundit, who covers the Premier League and UEFA Champions League, has said: "It's a bit of a joke"

Speaking to the Athletic, the former Liverpool player said:

“I’ve got no time for it at all, to be honest. I don’t think football can ever stand still. The game has to evolve, it has to move forward. Different things have to happen and you have to keep the interest of players, coaches and people around the world. That’s what makes it the best sport in the world, but there’s something about the Club World Cup where I almost feel like it’s being put together by FIFA to almost — not so much compete with the Champions League — but there’s been no thought about the players or the clubs.

“It’s a bit like FIFA think, ‘Well, we’ve only got the World Cup every four years and UEFA or Europe have this Champions League. There’s this unbelievable money and financial aspect to it and they have it every year but we’ve got to wait every four years for the World Cup.’ They’ve just tried to create something and I don’t think there’s any appetite really from players, clubs and even supporters.

“I am a massive football fan. I watch everything. I can’t envisage in the summer me stopping my holiday or going in from the (swimming) pool to go and watch a game. I think I’ll probably forget it’s on. Now I might be wrong and in 20 years time this may become that.

“But right now, I don’t think the players and the managers actually want to be there. That’s a really sad state of affairs for a new tournament. When do they ever get a rest? So we’re talking now about players who will only get a rest one summer every four years. That’s not right. It was fine the way it was, a tournament every two years and the players get a good long break in the summer. I’m not a fan right now, but listen, I may be proven wrong in the future. But if you’ve got a tournament that the players don’t really want to play in and the coaches don’t want to be there, I think you’ve a bit of a problem. ”

As usual, it is utter nonsense from Carragher, and you can almost guarantee it that if Sky Sports held the rights to the Club World Cup he would be front and centre of the coverage.

I am looking forward to this edition because it is the first true Club World Cup tournament, and because many of the European teams have some vulnerability, which can give a real chance to the likes of Flamengo, Fluminense, Boca Juniors, River Plate, Al Ahly and Al Hilal. I believe that interest in the tournament will build throughout it, especially if Inter Miami, Los Angeles FC and Seattle Sounders play well and progress through to the knockout phase.

DAZN set to give the Boxing treatment to Football as they seek to reinforce their position as the worldwide home of sport

DAZN signed a deal with FIFA to be the official global broadcaster of the FIFA Club World Cup last year, and have since sub-licensed coverage to other broadcasters around the world, with Channel 5 recently agreeing a deal to show 23 of the 63 games live in the UK. Every game will be broadcast for free on the DAZN app, with no registration required. It is said that DAZN paid $1billion for the worldwide rights, and they have chosen to use the FIFA Club World Cup as a tool to drive future subscriptions, hoping that people will see their other content and choose to subscribe.

DAZN are also offering a 'Premium Experience' for £19.99 which gives viewers access to HDR picture quality makes the picture sharper, brighter, and more lifelike - every tackle, goal and celebration in stunning, cinematic clarity; Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound truly immerses you. Filling your room with sound to put you at the heart of the action; Experience every moment with full highlights, extended coverage and an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at players and managers; Fewer ads mean more action. No in game interruptions when watching live, keeping you in the moment; Watch anytime, anywhere with downloads to watch on the go; With a DAZN plan you have Ultimate status on FanZone, 20% off at the FIFA Store and the chance to win tickets to the final in New York and other exclusive prizes.

Existing DAZN subscribers receive the premium experience automatically.

DAZN has 300 million worldwide users and more than 60 million subscribers to its premium platform, but despite this it is still seen by many as the the third or even fourth broadcaster of sport in the UK, behind Sky Sports, TNT Sports and Amazon Prime Video. This is largely due to the fact they currently have a small rights portfolio in the sports which are massively popular in the UK, namely Football, Rugby, Tennis, Cricket and Golf. DAZN were the worldwide broadcaster of the UEFA Women's Champions League from 2021-2025, before the rights were awarded to Disney+ from the 2025-26 season.

The streaming platform, with its headquarters in the UK, currently covers the Saudi Pro League, NIFL Women's Premiership, NIFL Women's Premiership League Cup, Coupe de France, Women's Première Ligue, Liga F, Frauen Bundesliga, and Coppa Italia Women. In 2024 they began a multi-year deal with the National League, to show every game from English football's premier semi-pro league. Until now Football has been a small part of a wider, bigger picture for DAZN, and their deal with FIFA could be transformational for them.

To date, the sport which has brought DAZN into millions of homes across the UK and the world, has been Boxing, and DAZN has established itself as the global home of the sport, signing deals with most of the world's biggest promoters including Matchroom, Queensberry, and Golden Boy, as well as being a partner of Riyadh Season, and a founding partner of the Ring Magazine.

DAZN's Boxing coverage is in depth, entertaining, informing and captivating. They have plenty of ancillary coverage and programming, not just on the app, but also via social media and YouTube, and the personalities they use in their coverage are champions, who have been there, seen it and done it. They have also given emerging talent their chance with Ade Oladipo, Josh Denzel, and Ali Drew all featuring in their coverage, and the FIFA Club World Cup will see them showcase new talent again.

DAZN will also engage with football 'creators' across the world to expand on their match coverage in the United States. Global Football Creator Program—an innovative initiative designed to amplify fan engagement in the build-up to the FIFA Club World Cup, will mobilize over 100 digital creators, ranging from die-hard football fanatics to casual content curators, collectively reaching more than 32 million followers across platforms. The initiative aims to deliver over 70 million impressions through social media and DAZN’s Platform.

Notable creators already on board include Peche Football, Howard Lee, Emily Austin, Oussi, Fabrizio Romano, Elischa Edouard, Kaylyn Kyle, Danny Simpson with additional talent joining in real time. Also featured are a dynamic group of on-the-ground creators helping to drive global excitement and coverage: AT Frenchies, Oussi Footy, Lisa Zimouche, BFordLancer, Alex Ramos, Jess Vincent, Jen Munoz, Mike Woz, George Benson, and Shepmates.

These creators will power a dynamic mix of content formats, including:

• On-the-ground coverage from inside stadiums

• Embedded reporting and behind-the-scenes storytelling

• Virtual and active creator content, such as Storytime segments

• Unboxing and merch-driven excitement

• A lineup of original DAZN social content, including Through Ball and Chasing the Trophy—a docuseries chronicling the Club World Cup trophy’s journey across continents, highlighting the global culture, passion, and people that define the beautiful game.

Additionally, DAZN will host a creator house in Miami in collaboration with Off-Pitch, bringing together a curated group of top-tier influencers and storytellers to produce real-time, fan-first content in the lead-up to the tournament. DAZN has also signed a deal with Goalhanger, owned by Gary Lineker, for THE REST IS FOOTBALL, to cover the tournament, showing highlights and adding comment and debate about every game across the tournament, looking to expand the reach of the FIFA Club World Cup.

2029 and beyond

It has been rumoured that Australia are going to bid to stage the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup, and if FIFA want to use the competition to truly globalise club football then they should award the event to the Aussies. The Australians know how to put on a show, having hosted the Olympic Games, Rugby World Cup, FIFA Women's World Cup and other major international sports events over the years. 2033 could see the FIFA Club World Cup head to South America and see Brazil and Argentina co-host the tournament. Two football-crazy countries with passionate fans in iconic stadiums would surely add to the appeal of the tournament.

Arsenal could qualify for 2029 if they continue their good performance in UEFA competitions, we have reached the Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals of the UEFA Champions League in the last two seasons, putting us inside the leading 4 clubs according to the UEFA Club Rankings (since 2023-24). It was never going to be easy for FIFA to determine a fair and balanced qualification criteria for a truly global FIFA Club World Cup, but if they want this tournament to truly transform Football globally then they need to work with the leagues and associations around the world to create a truly competitive qualifying system which is not solely reliant upon performance in continental competition.

Only a select few clubs qualify each season for the UEFA Champions League, and even fewer qualify regularly enough to earn enough points to qualify for the Club World Cup. This takes away the dream of being at and winning the Club World Cup from fans and players of the vast majority of clubs, so this is my idea to make the Club World Cup the most democratic and competitive tournament in world football.

This idea is not without controversy, but football needs to be open to change, so here it is.

• The FIFA Club World Cup finals would be expanded to 120 clubs

• Winners of the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League in seasons 2024-25, 2025-26, 2026-27, and 2027-28 would qualify automatically (maximum of 12 clubs)

• Winners of the CAF Champions League, and CAF Confederation Cup in seasons 2024-25, 2025-26, 2026-27, and 2027-28 would qualify automatically (maximum of 8 clubs)

• Winners of the Asian Champions League Elite, and Asian Champions League Two in seasons 2024-25, 2025-26, 2026-27, and 2027-28 would qualify automatically (maximum of 8 clubs)

• Winners of the Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana in seasons 2024-25, 2025-26, 2026-27, and 2027-28 would qualify automatically (maximum of 8 clubs)

• Winners of the CONCACAF Champions League in seasons 2024-25, 2025-26, 2026-27, and 2027-28 would qualify automatically (maximum of 4 clubs)

• Winners of the OFC Champions League in seasons 2024-25, 2025-26, 2026-27, and 2027-28 would qualify automatically (maximum of 4 clubs)

• Each country would be awarded a set number of places in the FIFA Club World Cup Finals based upon the Coca-Cola FIFA World Rankings, with no country receiving more than 3 spots. Countries ranked 1-5 would receive 3 spots; Countries ranked 6-10 would receive 2 spots and Countries ranked 11-50 would receive 1 spot into the FIFA Club World Cup Finals (maximum of 65 clubs)

• This will potentially leave a minimum of 12 spots available, a minimum of 9 of which will be awarded to the highest ranked, non-qualified club from the leading 9 (or more) leagues in world football as determined by FIFA

• 3 spots would be awarded to clubs from the host country

• The FIFA Club World Cup Qualification would be structured as follows in England, with 100 clubs competing for 3 spots

• Discontinue the English League Cup, and other league cups - England and Scotland are almost the only countries with a League Cup in 2025, played in addition to the FA Cup, and we can see that not even the football league clubs take it that seriously, and supporters certainly do not care about it, unless their club wins it.

• The League Cup would be replaced by FIFA Club World Cup qualifying, which would be played over a three year period

• All 92 League clubs in England, plus the leading 8 clubs from the National League (at the start of the qualifying period (2025 for example), would be drawn into 20 groups of 5 clubs

• The group stage would take place over two seasons, with 4 group games in season 2025-26, and the final 4 group games in season 2026-27

• The leading 2 clubs from each group would qualify for the knockout phase, along with the 4 best third-place finishers to complete 24 qualifiers

• The 24 qualifiers would be separated into 3 competitions of 8 clubs. The clubs would then play 2-legged Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals, followed by 3 separate finals at Wembley in March 2029, with the three winners qualifying for the FIFA Club World Cup.

• The FIFA Club World Cup Finals would be structured as follows:

  • 24 groups of 5 clubs

  • 4 group games

  • The leading 2 clubs in each group, plus the 8 best third-place finishers qualify for the knockout phase

  • Single-elimination play in round of 32, round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final

Despite all the negativity I am certain that the FIFA Club World Cup will not just be a success this year, but it will change club football around the world forever. Clubs like Boca Juniors and River Plate will be seen as the giants that they are, and other clubs will emerge from the shadows, and the finance generated from this tournament will help them be able to compete and develop.

It all begins on Saturday at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami with Inter Miami CF taking on Al Ahly at 8pm ET (1am BST), Live on DAZN and Channel 5 from Midnight, with presentation from Ade Oledipo and commentary from Conor McNamara and Andros Townsend, and reports from Alex Aljoe.