FIFA Club World Cup
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Updated 53s ago
It is day three at the 2025 Club World Cup and the Premier League is getting involved with Chelsea hosting MLS outfit LAFC.
Chelsea qualified for this tournament as 2021 Champions League winners, and claimed the UEFA Conference League title last month, while LAFC are late entrants following Club Leon’s expulsion after they were deemed to be in breach of FIFA’s multi-club ownership rules.
This is the opening game in Group D, which also features Flamengo and ES Tunis, being played at at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga.
You can sign up to DAZN to watch every FIFA Club World Cup game for free.
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Club World Cup Briefing: What’s drawing fans? Can Auckland mismatches be avoided? Is heat a problem?
These Club Leon fans are making themselves heard!
Remember, the Mexican team were expelled from the tournament for breaching FIFA’s multi-club ownership rules, with LAFC sneaking in via the hastily arranged play-in to decide the team which replaced them.
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When the draw for the Club World Cup was made, this was earmarked as a particularly favourable draw for Chelsea in Group D.
They avoided having to face another European club and their biggest competition will come from Brazilian side Flamengo.
LAFC will hope to prove any lingering MLS doubters wrong, but it will be tough for them to make it into the knockouts.
The final team in Group D is Esperance de Tunis, fresh from being crowned Tunisian champions. They will be keen to show what they can do, backed by a very vocal travelling support to the United States.
Flamengo and Esperance de Tunis meet at Lincoln Financial Field in today's last game.
Chelsea announced Liam Delap’s arrival this month after triggering his £30million ($40.7m) release clause at Ipswich Town. The 22-year-old striker scored 12 goals as they were relegated from the Premier League, having only joined from Man City last summer.
Dario Essugo, 20, joined from Sporting CP for £18.5m after the Portugal youth international spent the 2024-25 season on loan at Las Palmas, making 27 La Liga appearances. He is an option in defensive midfield.
Mamadou Sarr joined from Strasbourg in a €14m (£11.9m; $16.1m) agreement. The centre-back made 28 appearances as Strasbourg finished seventh in Ligue 1 to qualify for the UEFA Conference League.
Goalkeeper Mike Penders, 19, signed from Genk last summer but remained at the Belgian club last season before joining the Chelsea squad this summer. Similarly, midfielder Andrey Santos could make his first Chelsea appearance after various loan spells.
LAFC, meanwhile, signed winger Javairo Dilrosun on loan from Club America.
These tournaments are all about the shared experience — and we would love to hear from you throughout this Club World Cup.
Be it a comment, observation, prediction, question you always wanted answered or something completely different, we welcome it all.
Email us at: live@theathletic.com and have your say. We’re already looking forward to reading what you’ve got for us.
💬 “Everything is different. From the ownership, the manager… but I hope I will see some familiar faces in Orlando.”
LAFC's Oliver Giroud is relishing the chance to face his former club Chelsea in today's game.
Dive deeper into what he told The Athletic in his interview, below.
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Olivier Giroud on facing a very ‘different’ Chelsea and seeing ‘where MLS stands’ vs Europe
The Club World Cup could just as easily be considered the Confederation World Cup, given the legacy of each football continent sending its best team into global battle. And generally, the European team has come out on top.
The above shows how 20 years of the tournament breaks down in terms of geography and performance, with a UEFA club in the final in all bar the first running of the competition.
That was when Real Madrid finished fourth and Manchester United were knocked out in the group stage of the 2000 edition in Brazil.
It's why CONMEBOL has more top-three finishes in total. It is also why Chelsea have as good a chance as anyone to win this tournament.
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The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is a little different, with 32 teams competing — when the previous 20 editions never brought together more than eight clubs each.
Still, the legacy of those early years will continue and a host of famous names will be looking to add to their previous victories.
Here are the most successful clubs in this competition’s history — and the list includes Chelsea:
We have a trio of games on the slate for Day 3 at this tournament. This one in Atlanta gets us going — here today's full schedule…
Then tomorrow we have four games on the agenda with Borussia Dortmund, River Plate, Mamelodi Sundowns, and Inter all involved.
If you’re a soccer fan — and you love a plethora of other sports too — there is no better place to follow all your favourite teams, leagues, and players than with The Athletic.
From the UK, we’ve got you covered throughout this expanded Club World Cup and on into the build-up to next summer’s World Cup. In the U.S. the NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Final and MLB season are all compelling viewing right now.
Wimbledon tennis, F1’s iconic European races and Open golf are all on the way soon too. We have the lot covered and much more besides, so make sure you’re fully informed with access to our full experience.
And you’re in luck — you can subscribe to The Athletic on an exclusive offer right here.
Of all the Club World Cup venues, Mercedes-Benz Stadium is the most eye-catching. Its enormous halo board and pinwheel-designed retractable roof are major features of the massive NFL structure.
There are bars, restaurant stands and food stations throughout the stadium, and frankly there isn’t a bad seat in the house. One thing fans like most about MBS is that the stadium’s food is among the most affordable in the U.S.
Hot dogs, soft drinks and popcorn are all $2. In this economy, that’s a dream. Its location in downtown Atlanta, close to a plethora of hotels and restaurants and Centennial Olympic Park, makes MBS an ideal venue for big events.
The Premier League Summer Series has visited Atlanta recently and in 2024, MBS hosted the inaugural Copa America match between Argentina and Canada. Its artificial turf field has been replaced with natural grass ahead of this tournament.
GO FURTHER
Club World Cup stadium guide: 12 venues set to host some of the world’s best
All matches at this Club World Cup are available to watch on DAZN, so you can watch this evening’s game in the United States and anywhere else that has access to DAZN.
Broadcasting rights to a selection of matches has also been licensed out to other broadcasters.
In the UK, that is free-to-air broadcaster Channel 5 — and this game is one of those they have selected for coverage.
In Australia, the Club World Cup is also available to stream on Kayo Sports.
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It’s a toasty afternoon kick-off for this one in Atlanta, Ga.
Chelsea vs LAFC is scheduled to get going at 3pm ET.
That translates to 12pm noon (PT), 8pm in the UK and 3am in the morning for any diehard soccer fans in Australia.
Good day to you all and welcome to the latest match of our FIFA Club World Cup coverage — specifically, a Group D opener between Chelsea and LAFC.
Chelsea are the first of two Premier League representatives to get going at this tournament, and fresh from their UEFA Conference League success last month.
They are up against our third MLS representatives of this competition, with LAFC sneaking in via the hastily arranged play-in following Club Leon’s expulsion from the tournament for breaching FIFA’s multi-club ownership rules.
It’s been a curious start to this revamped Club World Cup so far but this one has the chance to really get things going, all in the impressive surrounds of the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.
We have full build-up and match updates on the way for you, as well as all the insights you could wish for from our team of correspondents on the ground and watching on.
So don’t go anywhere, because we’ve got you covered from here.