New Delhi: For a long while, the expanded format of the FIFA Club World Cup, now featuring 32 teams as opposed to seven has been seen as one of the biggest club football tournaments ever. There remains a slot open, following Mexican team Club Leon, who were set to face Chelsea, Flamego and ES Tunis in the group stage, were thrown out of the competition.
Leon, which is majorly owned by Grupo Pachuca and Colombian star James Rodriguez joining them in 2025, has failed to meet FIFA’s regulation for multi-club ownership. There is no clarity on who will replace them due to FIFA’s complicated selection criteria and the regulations that have crept out to suit their financial profits. However, there are some of the clubs that cloud well fit the bill.
⛔️🇲🇽 OFFICIAL: Club León from Mexico have been kicked out of the Club World Cup.
Decision made by FIFA due to multi-club ownership rules with replacement to be announced soon.
It also means James Rodriguez won’t be part of the competitions. pic.twitter.com/CZkiAS8u02
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) March 21, 2025
Al Nassr
Al Nassr may not have won the Saudi Pro League for the last six years, but even this season remains ten points behind table toppers Al Ittihad and haven’t Asian Champions League, which was the criteria for Club Leon’s inclusion. The Mexican team had won CONCACAF in 2023. However, for FIFA, bringing Cristiano Ronaldo doesn’t need massive persuasion.
FIFA knows the amount of viewership and footfall in stadiums will come due to Ronaldo’s participation. For a long while there have been talks about the Portuguese star meeting on the field with Lionel Messi and the duo’s rivalry is something that FIFA would be interested in encashing on.
LAFC
Champions League winners Chelsea (2021), Real Madrid (2022 and 2024) and Manchester City (2023) have reached the tournament owing to this feat. Same way Monterrey (2021), Seattle Sounders (2022) and Pachuca (2024) have already qualified and with the 2023 winner Leon out of the tournament, there is a chance that FIFA will look at LAFC.
LAFC lost the 2023 finals 3-1 on aggregate against Leon in the two legs. The side now has Hugo Lloris and Olivier Giroud, who won the World Cup 2018 with France and have Premier League pedigrees to their name which would be an attractive proposition.
Club America
There are four different champions in the Champions Cup over the last four seasons. In the Champions League, despite having just three winners in the last four editions, runners-up Liverpool, and Borussia Dortmund weren’t taken into consideration for the appearance which leaves LAFC in a spot of bother.
Instead, FIFA went for teams in the European clubs on the basis of UEFA rankings based on their performances over a four-year period in the Champions League, which included sides like Bayern Munichm Paris Saint-Germain, Inter Miami, Red Bull Salzburg and Dortmund. Concacaf didn’t have a pathway like this when FIFA initially chose the sides.
Manchester United
Manchester United maybe far from their glory days, placed 13th in the Premier League this season. They could be the worst team ever but they are still one of the most followed football teams ever and for FIFA that is a big criterion to bring the Red Devils into the competition.
It matters less that Man United haven’t reached the Champions League quarter-finals since 2019 and haven’t won the Premier League in more than a decade. Bringing a top-flight team would be a good point for a tournament happening in the United States.
Following FIFA’s decision to drop Mexican team Club Leon from the forthcoming Club World Cup, the 32 team based football tournament is looking at its replacement club. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
