In a major announcement, FIFA revealed that the United States will host the 2025 Club World Cup, solidifying the nation as a central hub for global soccer. This comes alongside the U.S. hosting or co-hosting other prominent tournaments such as the 2026 men’s World Cup and 2024 men’s Copa America. The U.S. has also been a regular host of regional championships like the men’s and women’s CONCACAF Gold Cups and aims to co-host the 2027 Women’s World Cup with Mexico. Additionally, the city of Los Angeles is preparing for the 2028 Olympics.
Over the next three years, America will host:
2024: Copa America
2025: FIFA Club World Cup
2026: FIFA Men’s World CupAnd the U.S. has a bid to host the Women’s World Cup in 2027 ⚽️📈 pic.twitter.com/w5szzt6Rvb
— Front Office Sports (@FOS) June 23, 2023
The First 32-Team Club World Cup
The Club World Cup, traditionally an eight-team tournament featuring continental champions, will undergo significant expansion in 2025. It will evolve into a quadrennial event with 32 teams, lasting for a month. Europe will have 12 representatives, including the likes of Chelsea, Real Madrid, and Manchester City, who have already qualified as recent UEFA Champions League winners. Other renowned clubs from around the world are also expected to participate, making it a gathering of soccer’s biggest brands.
Scheduled for June and July 2025, the Club World Cup will coincide with the following summer’s World Cup, allowing it to serve as a rehearsal and build anticipation for the grandest single-sport tournament in history.
FIFA’s Council, the organization’s influential decision-making body, made the selection of the United States during a virtual meeting. FIFA acknowledged the U.S.’s proven expertise in hosting global events and highlighted the potential synergies with the delivery of the 2026 World Cup, benefiting both tournaments and the development of football in the North American region.
While specific details regarding dates, match locations, and format are yet to be announced, it is expected that many of the 11 U.S. cities and stadiums chosen to host the 2026 World Cup games will also be selected as venues for the 2025 Club World Cup.
Who Will Qualify?
FIFA has already outlined the qualification procedures for the tournament. The field will consist of five clubs from North and Central America, four from Asia, four from Africa, six from South America, one from Oceania, and 12 from Europe. An additional seven spots will be awarded to winners of continental championships between now and 2024, while the remaining places will go to top-rated teams in their respective confederations based on performance rankings from 2021 to 2024. A two-per-country cap will be in place, except when three or more continental champions emerge from the same nation.
UEFA will be able to send at least eight non-champion clubs, ensuring that powerhouses like Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain are likely to qualify even if they do not win the 2023-24 Champions League. However, Manchester United would need to win next season’s Champions League to secure a spot due to the two-per-country restriction (Liverpool, having not qualified for the 2023-24 Champions League, has already been excluded).
The 2025 Club World Cup is going to be 🌶️🥵 pic.twitter.com/RIr3QXxbba
— 433 (@433) June 23, 2023
With top European clubs expected to be the favorites, South American sides such as Palmeiras and Flamengo are anticipated to be the primary challengers. The United States will have at least two representatives, with the Seattle Sounders already qualifying as the 2022 CONCACAF Champions League winners. The process for selecting the U.S.’s second (or third) team, the extra slot granted as the tournament’s host, has yet to be determined.
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