FIFA selects Lionel Messi's Inter Miami to play in Club World Cup 2025

The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, to be hosted in the USA next summer, will include Inter Miami, coached by Lionel Messi.

Messi and Inter Miami won the MLS Supporters' Shield on Saturday night with a 6-2 victory against the New England Revolution. FIFA president Gianni Infantino made the announcement as the team celebrated. The trophy is granted to the club with the best regular-season record this season.

In a competition reminiscent of the World Cup, 32 teams will battle for the title, with Real Madrid, Manchester City, Chelsea, and Paris Saint-Germain among them. Inter Miami will host the event, one of just two teams left in the field.

Hard Rock Stadium will host the first 2025 Club World Cup on June 15, featuring Inter Miami. The championship game will take place on July 13, 2025, at MetLife Stadium, the same location as the 2026 FIFA World Cup final.

First of all, your American team was the greatest of the season. Second, the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is an honor for you and your team because of your excellent accomplishment this year. Lastly, Infantino said during the postgame celebration at Chase Stadium that the host club of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup would have the privilege of playing the first game in Miami at Hard Rock Stadium.

Because of Messi's popularity, Inter Miami has been seen as a clear frontrunner to host the tournament. As his legendary career winds down, the Argentinean is enjoying a last season of Major League Soccer with an American club. He won the World Cup and the Copa America twice.

Although Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior, and Jude Bellingham are all top players, and Man City's Erling Haaland is an outstanding scorer, Messi would unquestionably be the tournament's best star.

Just so we're clear: FIFA, not Major League Soccer, decided to go with Inter Miami.

This month, FIFA was allowed to formally choose a host country after the organization's unanimous approval of tournament rules, even though MLS had already submitted proposals as criteria.

Thirty-one of the 32 teams have either won a major title or are regarded as the next highest-ranking club in their respective delegations; however, FIFA has not disclosed their methodology for selecting the host country bid in the past.

An announcement concerning the host slot distribution will be made at the appropriate time, according to FIFA, which states in several tournament-related publications on its website.

The host bid was earned before the MLS Cup finals start next week, although it remained unclear whether Inter Miami's MLS Supporters' Shield triumph or Messi's attendance alone were the determining reasons.

"We all know how Miami is in love with football, and how Inter Miami is supported from across Florida and beyond for your exciting brand of football," the president of FIFA continued in a statement. My heartfelt congratulations on the incredible triumph of the 2024 Supporters' Shield. When it comes to playing on American fields, you have shown time and time again that you are the top club.

Along with the previous four North American Concacaf Champions Cup champions, Inter Miami joins the ranks of the Club World Cup's second Major League Soccer club and fifth North American team overall. The following teams have won the Champions Cup: Monterrey of Mexico in 2021, the Seattle Sounders of the United States in 2022, Club Leon of Mexico in 2023, and Pachuca of Mexico, who defeated Columbus Crew of the United States earlier this year, to become the most recent winners.

Which clubs are participating in 2025 FIFA Club World Cup?

Here are 31 of 32 teams that have already qualified for the tournament, and how they qualified:

CONCACAF: North America, Central America and the Caribbean

• Monterrey (Mexico) – 2021 Concacaf Champions Cup
• Seattle Sounders (USA) – 2022 Concacaf Champions Cup
• Club Leon (Mexico) – 2023 Concacaf Champions Cup
• Pachuca (Mexico) - 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup
• Inter Miami (USA) – 2025 Club World Cup host slot

CONMEBOL: South America

• Palmeiras (Brazil) – 2021 CONMEBOL Libertadores
• Flamengo (Brazil) – 2022 CONMEBOL Libertadores
• Fluminense (Brazil) – 2023 CONMEBOL Libertadores
• River Plate (Argentina) - CONMEBOL ranking pathway
• Boca Juniors (Argentina) - CONMEBOL ranking pathway
• TBD - 2024 CONMEBOL Libertadores

UEFA: Union of European Football Associations

• Chelsea (England) – 2020/21 UEFA Champions League
• Real Madrid (Spain) – 2021/22 and 2023/24 UEFA Champions League
• Manchester City (England) – 2022/23 UEFA Champions League
• Bayern Munich (Germany) – UEFA ranking pathway
• Paris Saint-Germain (France) – UEFA ranking pathway
• Inter Milan (Italy) – UEFA ranking pathway
• Porto (Portugal) - UEFA ranking pathway
• Benfica (Portugal) – UEFA ranking pathway
• Borussia Dortmund (Germany) - UEFA ranking pathway
• Juventus (Italy) - UEFA ranking pathway
• Atletico Madrid (Spain) - UEFA ranking pathway
• FC Salzburg (Austria) - UEFA ranking pathway

AFC: Asian Football Confederation

• Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia) – 2021 AFC Champions League
• Urawa Red Diamonds (Japan) – 2022 AFC Champions League
• Al Ain (United Arab Emirates) - 2023/24 AFC Champions League
• Ulsan HD FC (South Korea) - AFC ranking pathway

CAF: Confederation of African Football

• Al Ahly (Egypt) – 2020/21, 2022/23 and 2023/24 CAF Champions League
• Wydad (Morocco) – 2021/22 CAF Champions League
• ES Tunis (Tunisia) - CAF ranking pathway
• Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa) - CAF ranking pathway

OFC: Oceania Football Confederation

• Auckland City (New Zealand) – OFC ranking pathway

Where will 2025 FIFA Club World Cup games be played?

Here’s the stadium sites where the Club World Cup will be played:

• Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta)
• TQL Stadium (Cincinnati)
• Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, N.C.)
• MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, N.J.)
• Hard Rock Stadium (Miami)
• Geodis Park (Nashville, Tennessee)
• Inter&Co Stadium (Orlando, Florida)
• Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Florida)

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