1863726243696312533 is not a valid tweet id Teams from the same confederation cannot be drawn together (except UEFA). Teams from the same country cannot be drawn together.
An explanation I saw on Twitter (and it makes sense) as to why Pot 1 doesn't have all UEFA teams is that FIFA went with the top 4 (by ranking) and the top 4 CONMEBOL (by ranking) and placed them on Pot 1. Pot 2 is the remaining 8 UEFA. Pot 3 is top 2 AFC, CAF and CONCACAF plus remaining 2 CONMEBOL Pot 4 is the remaining 8.
It’s all here: https://digitalhub.fifa.com/m/41eca...ocedures-for-the-FIFA-Club-World-Cup-2025.pdf There are additional constraints. For example, UEFA teams 1-4 cannot meet until the semis if they all win their respective groups.
If Salzburg were to by some miracle reach the final and finish second in the Austrian BL they would play the final on July 13th and a Champions League qualifier on July 22nd or 23rd. No off season for you!
The draw is made: https://apnews.com/article/fifa-club-world-cup-draw-messi-5877bb70f3d1b8bfec3845fe867d4071 Relatively lenient draw for Miami (no super club). Nightmare draw for Seattle. Miami - Al Ahly the opening match.
1864755227963892223 is not a valid tweet id Out of the CONCACAF teams the one that has it the worst is Seattle. They have 2 European giants in their group. Pachuca does have 2 Europeans too but they have the "weakest" one of them all. Everyone else in CONCACAF doesn't have it that bad.
[QUOTE="Nico Limmat, post: 42679102, member: Miami - Al Ahly the opening match.[/QUOTE] That's not an easy draw.
Pachuca has Asian giants Al Hilal. Not an easy task. Didn't say that. But it could have been worse. Up next is the CCC draw on December 10th.
Anyone outside a European giant isn't a big deal. Not saying it's a guaranteed win but your chances improve. It's not going to happen but if you take out the European giants this tournament becomes more "balanced" and less predictable.
Those who want to watch Al Ahly and Botafogo, can do so soon - as the FIFA Intercontinental Cup, the rebranded old format of the Club World Cup, is about to enter its critical stage. Up next is the "Copa Interamericana" on the 11th. 2024 FIFA Intercontinental Cup M1 | 22.09.24 | Al Ain - Auckland City 6:2 (Playoff) - Highlights M2 | 29.10.24 | Al Ahly - Al Ain 3:0 (African-Asian-Pacific Cup) - Highlights M3 | 11.12.24 | Botafogo FR - CF Pachuca (Derby of the Americas) M4 | 14.12.24 | Winner M3 - Al Ahly (Challenger Cup) M5 | 18.12.24 | Real Madrid - Winner M4 (Final)
We can theoretically watch it... but in reality its not on any TV or streaming in the US according to livesoccertv.
They'd have to pull some upsets, but with all matches at home nobody would be shocked if they make it out of the group. OTOH I don't know how Seattle could get even a single win in THAT group. I am a little scared. We've never seen MLS teams take on such serious opponents in serious games. What if it gets ugly?
Not overly relevant, given the lack of recent games, but interesting nonetheless. Here is the all-time record of MLS' competitive intercontinental matches: 1998 | DC United - Vasco da Gama (Brazil) 0:1 | Copa Interamericana (Final Series) 1998 | Vasco da Gama (Brazil) - DC United 0:2* | Copa Interamericana (Final Series) 2001 | NY Red Bulls - Deportivo Petare (Venezuela) 2:0 | Conmebol Copa Merconorte (Group Stage) 2001 | Deportivo Petare (Venezuela) - NY Red Bulls 2:1 | Conmebol Copa Merconorte (Group Stage) 2001 | Millonarios (Colombia) - NY Red Bulls 2:1 | Conmebol Copa Merconorte (Group Stage) 2001 | NY Red Bulls - Millonarios (Colombia) 0:1 | Conmebol Copa Merconorte (Group Stage) 2001 | Kansas City - Sporting Cristal (Peru) 1:2 | Conmebol Copa Merconorte (Group Stage) 2001 | Sporting Cristal (Peru) - Kansas City 2:1 | Conmebol Copa Merconorte (Group Stage) 2001 | Barcelona SC (Ecuador) - Kansas City 2:3 | Conmebol Copa Merconorte (Group Stage) 2001 | Kansas City - Barcelona SC (Ecuador) 1:1 | Conmebol Copa Merconorte (Group Stage) 2005 | DC United - Universidad Católica (Chile) 1:1 | Conmebol Copa Sudamericana (R16) 2005 | Universidad Católica (Chile) - DC United 3:2 | Conmebol Copa Sudamericana (R16) 2022 | Seattle Sounders - Al Ahly (Egypt) 0:1** | FIFA Club World Cup (Second Round) *Played in Fort Lauderdale (Florida) **Hosted by Morocco. Played in February 2023 3 wins, 2 draws, and 8 losses.
Including the best team in North and South America, Copa Libertadores and possibly Brazilian champion Botafogo
Botafogo are not winners of the Americas just yet. They will arrive exhausted in Doha. Pachuca are in Qatar as of today and have been idle since November 9th as they didn't make the Mexican Liguilla. Speaking of Pachuca... Club World Cup: Pachuca may sell León to comply with FIFA Rules: https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/42802809/pachuca-owner-willing-sell-leon-comply-fifa-rules I guess fans of Club America, Philadelphia, and Alajuelense still have hope. What about the ownership structure of MLS? Aren't all teams owned by the same holding company?
Yes. I made that point above. The investor/shareholders own the right to operate those teams but the teams, the intellectual property, even the uniforms are owned by MLS. And the player contracts of course.
I'm guessing the (internal) legal agreements are strong within MLS and that is what Grupo Pachuca needs to work on. To evidence that the conflicts of interest are under control. So probably create separate holding or management companies, separate governing bodies and senior management, and segregated player contracts for each club. A law firm can do this for them. Given that these regulations were introduced very recently that should probably be enough for FIFA. At least for this edition. Punishing either Pachuca or Leon would seem harsh. Unless they make a play to include Club America or a third "host" team in the Philadelphia Union - given that games already will be at Lincoln Field. Anything is possible with Infantino.
If one was watching on this day, what a game! Even in the two leg Cup tie loss for DCU, this match down in Chile displayed a passed the eye test for our then 10 year old league.