Soccer-Healthy crowds and Messi mania lift Club World Cup, but quality gap shows
MIAMI (Reuters) -The expanded Club World Cup has kicked off with healthy crowds, "Messi mania" and a festival atmosphere in Miami, giving an early vindication to world football body FIFA after fears of empty stands and global disinterest.
FIFA controversially awarded Lionel Messi's Inter Miami a backdoor route into the tournament, ensuring the sport's biggest name would be there after he propelled soccer to new heights in a country often ambivalent to the world's most popular game.
Some 61,000 fans packed the Hard Rock Stadium on Saturday to watch the Argentine and teammates play Egyptian giants Al-Ahly in a goalless draw.
Another strong crowd turned out on Sunday for the clash between Paris St Germain and Atletico Madrid, which ended in a one-sided 4-0 win for the Champions League winners.
However, Bayern Munich's 10-0 demolition of semi-professional Auckland City underscored the worrying gulf in quality between some of the competing clubs.
But the opening weekend largely delivered what FIFA had hoped for: vibrant crowds and global representation.
South American supporters made their presence especially felt.
More than 1,000 Boca Juniors fans in blue and gold turned Miami Beach into a party strip on Sunday ahead of their opening match, singing club anthems and waving flags in scenes reminiscent of a World Cup carnival.
"Wherever you go, Boca is here,' Gaston San Paul, a fan who flew in from Entre Rios in Argentina, told Reuters.
'Wherever we are we do this,' he added, referring to the "Banderazo" (flag party), a fan gathering destined to mark territory ahead of a game.
Boca and Real Madrid games were among the top early ticket sellers, according to FIFA, which said that top markets after the U.S. were Brazil, Argentina and Mexico.
Talk of empty stands was at least provisionally dismissed as well as heightened anxiety in the immigrant-heavy Miami area following recent federal immigration raids.
At the heart of the opening weekend buzz was Messi, whose presence has elevated Inter Miami's profile and guaranteed global glamour for the tournament.
$1 BILLION DEAL
Messi, who received a standing ovation before kickoff, was unable to find the net against Al-Ahly but provided flashes of brilliance in a tightly contested, physical match.
FIFA is banking not only on Messi's star power but also on a radical new broadcast strategy. The tournament is being streamed for free worldwide by DAZN in a $1 billion deal.
That agreement followed Saudi Arabia's SURJ Sports Investment, a subsidiary of the country's Public Investment Fund (PIF), acquiring a minority stake in DAZN for a reported $1 billion — another marker of the kingdom's growing investment footprint in sport.
The partnership, one of the largest broadcast packages in football history, is central to FIFA's push to maximize digital engagement and position the Club World Cup as a global spectacle ahead of the 2026 World Cup in North America.
The $1 billion prize money, which ensures a hefty $125 million for the winners, was an obvious incentive for the European clubs.
"There's a lot of money at stake. If you have the chance to earn a lot of money at a tournament, you should take the chance," former Bayern legend Karl Heinz Rummenigge said in the run-up.
DAZN has yet to provide viewership data.
While the crowds gave FIFA reason to be cheerful, the Bayern Munich v Auckland City match raised awkward questions about the tournament's balance as the German champions obliterated their opponents 10-0.
Despite the lopsided contest in Cincinnati, the overall mood among organizers was one of optimism, calling the opening weekend a resounding success.
Many Floridians, however, did not know a global soccer event was taking place in their state.
"There is a World Cup? Hockey?," said one person working in a restaurant in Miami Beach.
"This tournament is new, and it is different. It is the very first time clubs and players from all over the world have had the chance to face each other in competitive matches on a global stage," FIFA said, referring to the 32-club format after the previous editions featured seven.
With group matches continuing through the week and Boca's opener against Benfica expected to draw another bumper crowd in Miami later on Monday, FIFA will be hoping to build on the early momentum — and avoid more one-sided encounters like the one in Cincinnati as European teams appear to be a level above those from other continents'.
(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
27 minutes ago
- The Star
Cricket-First-ever T20 triple Super Over as Netherlands beat Nepal
(Reuters) -The Netherlands beat Nepal but needed a record-breaking three Super Overs to clinch victory in their Twenty20 tri-series match in Glasgow on Monday, the first time a triple Super Over has been seen in T20 or limited-overs cricket. The Dutch posted 152 for seven and appeared set for the win as Nepal required 16 runs from the final over, but Nandan Yadav scored a boundary on the last ball to force a Super Over. Nepal made 19 runs which the Dutch matched thanks to Max O'Dowd hitting a six on the final ball, and a second Super Over was needed for only the second time in men's international cricket, after India and Afghanistan last year. The Netherlands, batting first, hit 17 runs and Nepal again stayed in the match after Dipendra Singh Airee hit a six on the last ball to mark the first instance of a third Super Over. It failed to live up to the drama of the previous two with Nepal failing to score a single run and with the Dutch needing just one run, Michael Levitt smashed a six to finally seal the win for the Netherlands. The Dutch, who lost their opening match of the series with Scotland on Monday, have a rest day on Tuesday to recover but Nepal are straight back into action against the Scots. (Reporting by Trevor StynesEditing by Christian Radnedge)
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Cocktails, canapés and million-pound horses set scene for Royal Ascot
LONDON (Reuters) -In the gardens of a royal palace, Swiss billionaires, Qatari royals and the odd former footballer gathered on Monday night for a one-off chance to bag a racehorse ready to run at Royal Ascot the next day. Over 7.5 million pounds ($10.2 million) changed hands as bidders vied to secure one of 28 thoroughbred horses, 18 of which are due to compete this week for a chance to win a portion of Royal Ascot's 10 million pound prize pot. The Goffs London Sale, now in its 11th year, is an exclusive auction held in the grounds of Kensington Palace where anyone, providing they have a minimum 150,000 pound credit clearance, can bid for front-row access to one of the world's most prestigious sporting events. "You could be standing in the grounds of Kensington Palace at six o'clock and by two o'clock the next day, you could be at the parade ring alongside the British Royal Family with your own runner and your own colours," Henry Beeby, chief executive at the 160-year-old Goffs auction house, told Reuters. Top lot Ghostwriter, who holds an entry for the Group 2 Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot on Saturday, went for 2 million pounds to football agent Kia Joorabchian of Amo Racing while the second most expensive horse, Woodshauna, sold for 625,000 pounds to John Stewart of Resolute Racing - two of the biggest buyers in the sport. Joorabchian, who is known to be a big spender after dropping over 24 million pounds at a single sale last year, said his son had picked out the horse and that it had a good chance in the Hardwicke Stakes, a prestigious Group 2 race held at Royal Ascot. Danish entrepreneur and hotelier John Christensen said he bought Super Soldier for 390,000 pounds so his friends would have something to cheer on at the races on Tuesday. Last year's sale turned over almost 8.5 million pounds ($11.54 million) though Beeby conceded that was an exceptional year. Most years the London sale raises 3–6 million pounds, he said. Horses bought at the sale have some history of success at Ascot, though this is by no means guaranteed. The last time a graduate of the London ring won at Royal Ascot was in 2021 when Oxtedwon the Group 1 King's Stand Stakes while others, like Givemethebeatboys, sold in 2023, have been well-placed. JACKPOTS The most expensive horse ever sold there was the French mare, Sparkling Plenty, who had won a Group 1 in Chantilly just days before. She was sold outside the ring in 2024 for 5 million pounds, beating the previous top price of 1.3 million pounds. The sale acts as an unofficial curtain raiser for Royal Ascot where trainers and top horses from around the world will compete over five days in races worth up to a million pounds. Highlights include the marathon two-and-a-half-mile Gold Cup on Thursday as well as numerous top-grade races featuring some of the world's best racehorses. Horseracing may contribute 4.1 billion pounds to the British economy annually, but it's often a game of risk and chance. While jackpots, - like the 9,000-euro ($10,402) colt, Kodi Bear, who returned 500,000 euro when sold again around 9 months later - do happen, for most buyers, owning a racehorse is a luxury. And it can go badly wrong. An American-bred horse, St James Square, was sold for $2.4 million in 2018 and never finished better than sixth in five starts. "We're dealing in luxury items, nobody needs to have a racehorse," Beeby said. Like all commodity markets, thoroughbred sales are not immune to global trade headwinds and tariffs. And like many trading houses, Goffs is navigating trade tensions with the United States – Goffs' trade with the United States was around 10 million euro worth of horses last year --and the fallout from Brexit, which ended a tripartite agreement on the free trade of horses between Britain, France and Ireland. "We are indelibly linked to the worldwide economy but by the same token, this is an extraordinarily resilient global business," he said. "We could do without [tariffs], we're hoping they're a distraction rather than a barrier." ($1 = 0.8652 euros) ($1 = 0.7366 pounds) (Reporting by Virginia Furness Editing by Sandra Maler)
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Golf-McIlroy first to qualify for Team Europe at Ryder Cup
Jun 15, 2025; Oakmont, Pennsylvania, USA; Rory McIlroy plays his shot from the 12th tee during the final round of the U.S. Open golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images (Reuters) -Rory McIlroy became the first player to qualify for Europe for the 2025 Ryder Cup, the team announced on Monday, with the Masters champion set to make his eighth consecutive appearance in the biennial event. McIlroy sealed his spot through the European Points List, a qualification pathway based on performances in DP World Tour and co-sanctioned events, as the Northern Irishman has enjoyed four victories so far since last August. The 35-year-old completed a long-sought career Grand Slam at Augusta National in April, on top of victories at the Dubai DP World Tour Championship in November, the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, and The Players Championship. A top-20 finish at the U.S. Open over the weekend was enough to mathematically guarantee his place on the team. The 2025 Ryder Cup will be held at Bethpage Black in New York from September 26–28, with European captain Luke Donald set to round out his 12-man squad later this year through six automatic qualifiers and six captain's picks. "It's always a huge honour to represent Europe in the Ryder Cup, so it means a great deal to have qualified for my eighth in a row and to be part of Luke's team again at Bethpage," McIlroy said. "Winning a Ryder Cup away from home is one of the biggest challenges there is in golf. We know it is going to be tough in New York, but we are all looking forward to that challenge in September and the opportunity to potentially do something special." McIlroy has been a Ryder Cup mainstay since his debut in 2010, helping Europe to five victories in seven appearances. (Reporting by Janina Nuno Rios in Mexico CityEditing by Christian Radnedge)
