News: 2025 FIFA Club World Cup: General [Multiple Rs]

Funny how winning a World Cup can change your perspective.

 

I feel awful for the most loyal fans in the US and abroad who picked up tickets at the very beginning.

A simple market study would have allowed them to price tickets correctly from the start, without anyone feeling fleeced.

 

one can only hope LA gets their ass kicked

 

(Most) Despicable person (in sport administration).

 

by far .... but arsene venger does his best to reach the second spot on that list

p.s. what was that on saturday?

 

People paid $226 to 387 in 2016 dollars to watch Mexico lose 0-6.

 

0-7. But who's counting.

 

I admit it doesn't feel great. Especially since it comes at the ultimate expense of León, a great city I visited as recently as 2023. But then I remember that my beloved Grasshoppers are on the verge of relegation due to the awful LAFC absentee ownership, and rooting for Las Águilas becomes real easy.

 

Jude Bellingham seems to be saying all the right things:
Jude Bellingham Hints at How Seriously Real Madrid Are Taking Club World Cup
"We have the opportunity to win a different kind of title, really. I think that’s the truth: trying to be the first club to win it. Obviously, Real Madrid deserves that kind of recognition."

"I also think it’s being able to play somewhere I haven’t played regularly, in the United States, and also playing against opponents I wouldn’t normally get the chance to play against. So, I definitely think there are a lot of positives to it."

I know it is probably just lip service cause he does not want to tick anybody off or be seen as just packing it in before the tournament even starts... ... but it at least seems sincere.

 

"different kind of title" lol
He is more diplomatic than I think I would be if I was in his situation. I would go full Zlatan!

 

https://www.insideworldfootball.com...mx-cas-demand-reinstate-promotion-relegation/

 

These are soccer players. They want to play and they want to compete. Some of the older guys might appreciate a longer offseason break, but for the most part they’d play every day if they could.

Most of the complaints about the CWC are from the management and owners, whose job it is to balance the players’ workload and protect their long term investments.

But from a fan and player perspective (especially outside of Europe), there’s excitement for the tournament.

 

Mauricio Pochettino, USMNT coach, sends strong message against FIFA Club World Cup:
https://worldsoccertalk.com/amp/new...s-strong-message-against-fifa-club-world-cup/

 

Groundbreaking transfer window to allow all 32 FIFA Club World Cup™ teams to sign new players for the tournament:
https://inside.fifa.com/organisatio...ndow-club-world-cup-32-teams-sign-new-players

All a bit messy. Hopefully just for this edition.

 

“The Club World Cup doesn’t benefit any national team. But we understand how the business of football works, and it’s up to us to minimize the damage that can come from overlapping competitions,”

 

Ronaldo at the Club World Cup? Which teams could make transfers before June 14?
https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_...-world-cup-which-teams-make-transfers-june-14

 

Sounders have been working with FIFA to try to find solutions for fans who may have paid overly inflated prices when tickets were first released:
https://www.sounderatheart.com/2025/05/club-world-cup-ticket-prices-are-finally-dropping/

Good initiative by the Sounders, but something should be done across the board.

 

Guillermo Almada resigns from Pachuca less than a month before FIFA Club World Cup:
https://www.goal.com/en-ae/lists/gu...ld-cup/blt401196a235f0698f#cse6557cebd16dc0b0

Not ideal for Los Tuzos.

 

So, basically this has turned into an all-star game.

 

I don’t know how others feel, but I’m getting to a point where I can’t wait for Ronaldo and Messi to retire.

 

Looks like the prize money is subject to withholding tax:
https://dailysports.net/news/al-ahl...ssue-ahead-of-fifa-club-world-cup-what-is-it/

Interesting. I presume the same applies to the World Cup next year? Quite a complex tax picture, with multiple hosts and multiple double taxation agreements. Not to mention, some teams will play in multiple tax jurisdictions.

 

Man City unveil home kit to be worn at FIFA Club World Cup:
https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/45124369/man-city-unveil-home-kit-worn-fifa-club-world-cup

As of today, on the last matchday of the premier league, Man City are still wearing the golden CWC badge earned in December 2023. Will they still wear it when taking the field next month? And if they do, will that indirectly confirm that the expanded 2025 CWC is not a statistical reset and that the FIFA Intercontinental Cup is a new competition?

In other news, Jose Castillo joins Pachuca on a one-month loan just for the CWC: https://sports.yahoo.com/article/chivas-loans-jose-castillo-pachuca-045353727.html

Again, I hope we don't see this in 2029. The rosters should represent their respective clubs in a "normal state". I mean that is why we are tuning in - right? The curiosity of seeing clubs play each other that normally never would.