The FIFA Club World Cup 2025 will be played in a new, expanded format featuring 32 clubs, similar to the World Cup, which involves international teams. From this edition, not only the continental winners but also the best-ranked sides across all confederations over four years will be included. Europe will have the highest number of teams, with 12, followed by CONMEBOL, which has six slots. The other confederations, namely AFC, CAF and CONCACAF, all have four slots each, with the latter having one additional host slot as the competition takes place in the United States. With a record-breaking prize pool of Club World Cup 2025 expected to cross $1 billion, FIFA is incentivizing participation and performance like never before. Such a large and diverse tournament featuring top clubs globally guarantees exciting fixtures that will captivate audiences worldwide. While most of these fixtures involve top European clashes that the UEFA Champions League often produce, some spicy encounters between confederations, predominantly UEFA versus the rest, will also grab the headlines.
Here are the top games to watch in the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 group stage:
Paris Saint-Germain vs Atletico Madrid - Rose Bowl Stadium, California (16 June 2025)
One of the top clashes to start the Club World Cup 2025 will be the recently crowned Champions League winner, Paris Saint-Germain, taking on Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid at the 89k-plus seater Rose Bowl Stadium in California. The two faced each other for their first competitive meeting in the Champions League only last season and will now renew their hostility again in the new Club World Cup this time. The pair will make their debut in the competition thanks to their consistent showing in the Champions League over the last four years. The Spanish giant triumphed in that meeting, played in November 2024, with a late comeback, but a lot has changed since then. PSG turned into a different beast, going on to win Europe’s premier competition in style by thrashing another Club World Cup participant, Inter Milan, 5-0 in a record-breaking final. Luis Enrique’s side enters this competition as favourites too, with their group opener coming right after that exhilarating showpiece in Munich only weeks ago. Atletico Madrid did not win any trophies in the past season, but they ended strongly by finishing third in the La Liga standings. The winner of this match is expected to clinch the top spot in Group B, which also includes Botafogo and Seattle Sounders as other opponents, raising the excitement level of this fixture.
Real Madrid vs Al-Hilal - Hard Rock Stadium, Florida (19 June 2025)
However, the highlight game of the entire Club World Cup group stage is the repeat of the 2023 edition final between record competition winners Real Madrid and the most successful Asian Club, Al-Hilal. That showpiece ended with Los Blancos triumphing in a high-scoring final, a 5-3 thriller and it won’t be a surprise that a similar battle plays out here. The fixture holds a fascinating narrative as both teams will play their first official game under new management, ushering in a new era for the clubs. Real Madrid will be managed by their former player Xabi Alonso, who had an exceptional journey in guiding Bayer Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title last year, alongside winning the DFB Pokal and reaching Europa League final, without losing a single game and will hope to turn back the hopes of a club that saw a miserable end to an otherwise successful second stint of Carlo Ancelloti. On the other hand, Al-Za'eem hired Simeone Inzaghi, who witnessed his side Inter suffer the biggest humiliation in the Champions League final against PSG in his last game in charge. However, the Italian deserves full credit for putting Nerazzuri back to their heyday and will want to exhibit his brilliance in the Saudi Pro League. The game will be an early group decider between two strong competition contenders, making this a highly anticipated clash.
Flamengo vs Chelsea - Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia (20 June 2025)
The second Group D fixture will see the 2022 Copa Libertadores winner, Flamengo, taking on Premier League giants Chelsea, who qualified by winning the Champions League in 2021, for an exciting clash. The Brazilian club, coached by Atletico Madrid star Filipe Luis, have been one of the best sides from their confederation recently, having won the Brazilian Serie A and the Copa Libertadores twice in the last seven years, alongside reaching the 2019 Club World Cup final. The current league leaders, the most successful Brazilian team this century, possess some well-known names who have played at the highest level of European football, Alex Sandro, Danilo and Jorginho meaning they won’t be pushovers. The Blues are aware of the fact, but have a young, talented squad at their disposal, which won the Conference League unbeaten last season and the first trophy under their current ownership. They are one of the renowned names in English football, having won 11 trophies alone in a decade, including the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup. With the quality of star boy Cole Palmer and the new striker signing, Liam Delap, joining the ranks, Chelsea would want to make a mark in the competition, starting with winning their group. Both teams will arrive in this game expecting to have won their competition opener, LAFC and Tunis, respectively, making this a pivotal face-off that will define each other’s fate in the group.
Benfica vs Bayern Munich - Bank of America Stadium, North Carolina (25 June 2025)
A fixture that became frequent in the Champions League, played over six times in the last decade and 12 times overall, Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich will face Portuguese heavyweights Benfica in the new Club World Cup this time. Like the other games in this list, this clash in the final group game is a possible decider for the top spot if Boca Juniors and Auckland City don’t have any tricks up their sleeves. Benfica have not defeated the Bavarians in those encounters, but have been a consistent side in the Champions League over the last four years and winning five league titles in a decade. Meanwhile, Bayern Munich have retaken their crown in the Bundesliga under Vincent Kompany and are hoping to win this silverware to add more legacy to their name. The two-time winners have won eight times in this meeting, including scoring four or more goals in the last three encounters. It is now left to see whether the Eagles will finally get their revenge in the first meeting on the global stage, or Germany’s best will continue their rampage in this fixture.
Juventus vs Manchester City - Camping World Stadium, Florida (27 June 2025)
Another final group game in the competition, Group G, witnesses another all-European clash to decide the toppers, with two struggling teams last season, Juventus and Manchester City, clashing in Florida. The Old Lady of Turin has been in a slump for a few seasons now, just managing to get into the top four in the Serie A in the previous campaign. However, the surprise was the 2023 Champions League winners suffering a major dip in their level last season by losing their four-year domestic dominance, being beaten in the FA Cup final by underdogs Crystal Palace and requiring a late-season surge to secure a berth in Europe’s premier competition next season. The response from City was swift as they made several signings to strengthen their squad and welcomed back their Ballon d’Or-winning midfield lynchpin Rodri from an ACL injury, raising high hopes for the Club World Cup. Juventus won the Champions League meeting 2-0 last year, although it will be anything but straightforward this time, as a cracker of a fixture awaits.
