With the qualification of Atlético de Madrid in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, FC Barcelona has little chance of participating in the Club World Cup in 2025. A real blow for this team in great financial difficulties.
The very first Club World Cup, organized in 2025 in the United States (from June 15 to July 15), will probably not count on FC Barcelona among its 32 participants. Real Madrid is guaranteed to participate as winner of the 2022 Champions League and, to accompany it, Atlético de Madrid holds the rope at the expense of the Blaugranas (with European results over the last four seasons).
Barça qualified for the quarter-finals of the C1 on Tuesday against Napoli, but the qualification of Atlético the next day, after penalties against Inter, did not help matters. The Catalan club must qualify for the last four and hope for two defeats for the Colchoneros in the quarters to overtake them. Another solution: lift the big-eared cup on June 1 at Wembley.
The jackpot for participating clubs
The FCB of President Joan Laporta, in a dramatic financial situation, would really need to take part in this first “Club Super World Cup” imagined by Gianni Infantino, the boss of Fifa. Thanks to the TV rights to the competition as well as the XXL ticketing expected for a month, the 32 participating clubs could pocket up to 50 million euros just in participation bonuses. The winner and the unfortunate finalist will receive nice bonuses.
Twelve European clubs will be there, namely the winners of the 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 Champions League – namely Chelsea, Real Madrid and Manchester City – and the eight other best teams with results in the CL. PSG, Inter, FC Porto, Dortmund, Benfica and Juventus are already guaranteed to play in the 2025 Club World Cup, a year before the 2026 World Cup in North America.
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