How does the Club World Cup work? Tournament format, schedule, bracket and rules
The 2025 Club World Cup, which is taking place in the United States, gets underway on June 14 and runs until July 13.
It is a revamped and bigger version of the old tournament, which was first played in 2000. Teams from six continents and 20 countries are competing, with all of them — some more realistically than others — aiming to be crowned club world champions in New Jersey in the middle of next month.
Here, The Athletic explains how the competition works, what the schedule is, the rules surrounding squad numbers and suspensions and much more.
There are 32 teams playing in the tournament. All six of FIFA's confederations are being represented, with 12 clubs from UEFA (Europe), six from CONMEBOL (South America), five from Concacaf (North America), four from AFC (Asia), four from CAF (Africa) and one from OFC (Oceania).
Brazil are the country with the most different clubs participating (four: Botafogo, Flamengo, Fluminense and Palmeiras), with the U.S. the only other nation providing more than two teams (three: Inter Miami, Los Angeles FC and Seattle Sounders).
For all of the groups and the full fixture list, click here.
The 32 teams have been split into eight groups of four, with every team playing the other three sides in their group once. Three points will be awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss. The top two teams in each group (by total number of points) will advance to the knockout stage, and the bottom two will be eliminated.
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If one or more teams are level at the end of the group stage, their finishing position will be determined by points obtained in the matches between the sides in question, not goal difference, like at the World Cup. If they still can't be separated after this, then various other tiebreakers will be applied, all the way down to the drawing of lots.
The knockout stage consists of a round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final. All these matches are one-off straight knockout ties, with the winner advancing and the loser being eliminated. If teams are level after normal time in any of these knockout matches, then an additional 30 minutes of extra time will be played, split over two halves. If there is still no winner, then a penalty shootout will determine who advances.
The 32-team, eight-groups-of-four system is the same that was used at the World Cup from 1998 to 2022. However, unlike at the World Cup, there will be no third-place play-off for the losing semi-finalists in the club version this summer.
Group stage: June 14-26
Round of 16: June 28-July 1
Quarter-finals: July 4-5
Semi-finals: July 8-9
Final: July 13
All dates shown are according to the schedule on U.S. Eastern Time
After the group stage, the 16 teams that have qualified will be split, with eight on each side of the draw (called a bracket). There will be four group winners and four runners-up in each half.
All eight of the ties in the round of 16 will see a winner play a second-placed team from another group. The winner of Group A plays the runner-up in Group B, and the winner of Group B plays the runner-up in Group A. It is the same with Groups C and D, Groups E and F and Groups G and H.
Match 49: June 28, 12pm ET
Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia
Match 50: June 28, 4pm ET
Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte
Match 53: June 30, 3pm ET
Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte
Match 54: June 30, 9pm ET
Camping World Stadium, Orlando
Match 51: June 29, 12pm ET
Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
Match 52: June 29, 4pm ET
Hard Rock Stadium, Miami
Match 55: July 1, 3pm ET
Hard Rock Stadium, Miami
Match 56: July 1, 9pm ET
Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
Match 58: July 4, 9pm ET
Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia
Match 57: July 4, 3pm ET
Camping World Stadium, Orlando
Match 59: July 5, 12pm ET
Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
Match 60: July 5, 4pm ET
MetLife Stadium, New Jersey
Match 61: July 8, 3pm ET
MetLife Stadium, New Jersey
Match 62: July 9, 3pm ET
MetLife Stadium, New Jersey
Match 63: July 13, 3pm ET
MetLife Stadium, New Jersey
The eight winners of these ties will advance to the quarter-finals, where they will face a team on their side of the draw for a place in the semi-finals. The same applies in the last four, with the winners reaching the final.
In the group stage, teams from every confederation apart from UEFA have been kept apart and therefore will not meet.
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Four of the eight groups contain two UEFA clubs, meaning that Paris Saint-Germain vs Atletico Madrid, Benfica vs Bayern Munich, Juventus vs Manchester City and Red Bull Salzburg vs Real Madrid are the only same-confederation clashes in the first round.
Once the knockout stage begins, teams can play an opponent from any confederation, including their own.
Not in the group stage, but in the knockout stage they can.
Teams are permitted to have up to 35 players in their squad at the start of the tournament (and must have a minimum of 26). At least three of the squad members must be goalkeepers.
However, given that standard player contracts in European club football run from July 1 to June 30, FIFA have inserted a mid-tournament registration window — June 27 to July 3 — in which teams may replace players whose deals have expired. They can also add up to two extra players during this period, meaning from the start of the knockout stage onwards, clubs may have up to 37 men in their squad. Overall, teams can make a maximum of six changes to their squad during this seven-day window.
Each team will be permitted 26 players in their matchday squad: 11 starters and 15 substitutes.
Teams will be allowed to make a maximum of five substitutions in each match, as well as a concussion replacement if necessary. If games go to extra time, then each side will be allowed to make up to six substitutions, regardless of how many they made in normal time.
If a player (or member of the coaching staff) receives a yellow card in two separate games up to and including the quarter-finals, they will not be allowed to participate in the next match. There is an amnesty at the semi-final stage. Yellows picked up in previous matches will be ignored, meaning someone can only miss the final if they receive a red card in the semi-final.
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If an individual receives a red card (either a direct one or via two yellow cards), they will be banned from the next match, regardless of the stage of the tournament. If the offence is deemed serious enough by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee, they may be suspended for more than one game.
The next Club World Cup will take place in 2029; like the World Cup, it will be held every four years. The hosts of the next edition are yet to be decided.
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