FIFA Club World Cup
Club World Cup
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Updated 1m ago
It is day two at the 2025 Club World Cup with Paris Saint-Germain vs Atletico Madrid opening Group B at the Rose Bowl.
This all-European affair should be a cracker, as recently crowned European champions PSG take on one of Spain’s most consistent clubs — and both sides will harbour hopes of going all the way at this tournament.
You can sign up to DAZN to watch every FIFA Club World Cup game for free.
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 — when Real Madrid finished fourth and Manchester United were knocked out in the group stage of the 2000 edition in Brazil.
That is why CONMEBOL has more top-three finishes than UEFA.
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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:
As Felipe noted there, the Rose Bowl is a) no stranger to hosting marquee soccer games and b) not actually in the city of Los Angeles, despite FIFA referring to it as the Los Angeles site for the Club World Cup.
The Rose Bowl sits in the suburb of Pasadena, Calif., roughly 10 miles (16 kilometers) northeast of downtown Los Angeles, where protests have erupted over the past week-plus against deportation raids carried out by U.S. federal Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The heart of downtown Los Angeles is currently under a nightly curfew imposed by mayor Karen Bass after some of the protests turned violent last weekend.
Pasadena’s own mayor, Victor Gordo, said Thursday that no federal immigration enforcement has taken place inside the city recently. Like many other Los Angeles suburbs, Pasadena has also seen smaller protests against ICE and President Donald Trump in recent days, but those have been completely peaceful with no reports of violence.
Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California
There are modern marvels like Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and there’s the iconic and battle-tested Rose Bowl. This is truly the crown jewel of American stadiums. It has hosted two Olympic Games (1932 and 1984) and two memorable World Cup finals.
The 1994 men’s final between Brazil and Italy was the culmination of an iconic World Cup. That tournament put the U.S. on the map in the world of international football competitions. And who can forget Brandi Chastain’s winning penalty kick in the 1999 Women’s World Cup final? The U.S. win over China was its second World Cup title.
Of course, American college football also has a long and rich history at the Rose Bowl, and there have been many hotly contested matches between rivals Mexico and the U.S. in Pasadena, too. The Club World Cup will reintroduce the stadium to a global audience before it is a main attraction for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
The 2025 Club World Cup didn't give us any goals on opening night, but it gave us some pretty good entertainment.
Inter Miami met Egyptian champions Al Ahly at Hard Rock Stadium and, for the entirety of the first half, it looked like one of the MLS representatives might be embarrassed on the global stage.
But Oscar Ustari saved a 43rd-minute penalty and it sparked his side into life.
In the end Miami left the pitch frustrated with a goalless draw as, led by Lionel Messi, they enjoyed a host of decent late chances.
Unfortunately for them, they found Al Ahly goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy in inspired form, with his last-minute fingertip save to deny Messi a world-class winner proving to be the highlight.
A super busy day is in store across the United States today for the Club World Cup, and it is already under way.
We started in Cincinnati and with focus switching to Los Angeles for this one, we soon head east to New Jersey before finishing today’s action in Seattle.
Here are the fixtures (all times in ET):
12pm ET
3pm ET
6pm ET
10pm ET
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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 ahead of the expanded Club World Cup and on into the build-up to next summer’s World Cup.
Then in the U.S. the NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Final and MLB season are all in full flow, with golf’s U.S. Open concluding at Oakmont later today.
And that’s without mentioning F1’s Canadian Grand Prix and tennis’ Wimbledon Championships to come.
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.
All matches at the Club World Cup are available on DAZN, so that is where this evening’s game will be shown in the United States and anywhere else that has access to DAZN.
Broadcasting to a selection of the matches has been licensed out to other broadcasters. This match will also air on TNT and truTV in the U.S.
In the UK, that is free-to-air broadcaster Channel 5 — but this particular game is not available through them.
It’s a midday start in California for this one, with kick-off at 12pm (PT).
That translates to 3pm ET, 8pm in the UK, 9pm in both France and Spain and 3am in the morning for those of you keen folk in Australia.
Good day to you all and welcome to our coverage of the Club World Cup — and specifically a tasty Group B opener between two European heavyweights.
It’s the recently crowned Champions League winners and arguably the most exciting team in club football right now, Paris Saint-Germain, taking on Spanish spoilers par excellence, Atletico Madrid.
And it’s taking place in the magnificence of the Rose Bowl, Pasadena.
We will have full build-up and match updates for you, as well as all the insights you could ever want from our team of correspondents at the ground and watching on.
So don’t go anywhere, because we’ve got you covered from here.