JEDDAH — The FIFA Council, meeting ahead of the FIFA Club World Cup 2023 semifinals in Jeddah, confirmed the key details for the first 32-team FIFA Club World Cup. Scheduled to take place in the United States from June 15 to July 13, 2025, the tournament will be known as Mundial de Clubes FIFA and feature clubs from each of the six confederations. The Council endorsed the club ranking methodology as part of the access principles, aiming to ensure the highest quality based on sporting criteria from the group stage of each confederation's premier club competition over the most recent four seasons. This approach incentivizes results in every game, assigning points for wins, draws, and progression through competition stages. For European clubs, the UEFA club coefficient system will be used to determine their ranking for the FIFA Club World Cup 2025. This decision considers the completion of three full seasons and a group stage of the fourth season of the UEFA Champions League. The composition of participating teams is already taking shape based on the approved principles of access and results from the respective continental club competitions. The tournament will feature teams from Africa, Asia, Europe, North and Central America, the Caribbean, Oceania, and South America, alongside a club from the host country. The format of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 will mirror that of the FIFA World Cup 2022 and the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023, with the exception of the absence of a third-place play-off. The competition will begin with a group stage composed of eight groups of four teams each, followed by a single-match knockout stage from the round of 16 onwards. FIFA President Gianni Infantino highlighted the significance of the tournament, emphasizing its role in providing a global stage for clubs from all confederations and contributing to the global development of football. In addition to the FIFA Club World Cup, the FIFA Intercontinental Cup will be introduced as an annual event from 2024, featuring champions from all confederation premier club competitions. This cup will conclude with a final between the UEFA Champions League winners and the winners of an intercontinental playoff between clubs from other confederations. The first edition of the FIFA Intercontinental Cup in 2024 will include stages leading up to a final in December, with specific dates and locations to be confirmed by FIFA in consultation with the clubs and confederations.
