New York: FIFA, world soccer’s governing body, has announced 12 stadiums in the US that will stage 63 matches of the new FIFA Club World Cup 2025, with the final to be played at MetLife Stadium in New York New Jersey.
The tournament kicks off on June 15, 2025. The MetLife Stadium in New York, New Jersey staging the final on July 13, 2025 , just over a year before the venue stages the FIFA World Cup 26 final.
The multipurpose open-air stadium for the final, opened in 2010 with a capacity of 82,500, was the venue for the final of the 2016 Copa America Centenario, when Chile defeated Lionel Messi’s Argentina on penalties. The venue has earlier been chosen to host the FIFA World Cup 26 Final, on top of two further knockout ties and five group-stage matches.
Besides MetLife Stadium, the other 11 venues are; Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta), Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte), TQL Stadium (Cincinnati), Rose Bowl Stadium (Los Angeles), Hard Rock Stadium (Miami), GEODIS Park (Nashville), Camping World Stadium (Orlando), Inter&Co Stadium (Orlando), Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia), Lumen Field (Seattle), and Audi Field (Washington, D.C.)
“The FIFA Club World Cup 2025 will feature 12 fantastic stadiums where a new chapter in football’s global history will be written by great players from the 32 best clubs in the world,” FIFA chief Gianni Infantino said.
“This new FIFA competition is the only true example in worldwide club football of real solidarity and inclusivity, allowing the best clubs from Africa, Asia, Central and North America and Oceania to play the powerhouses of Europe and South America in an incredible new World Cup which will impact enormously the growth of club football and talent globally,” he added.
The Club World Cup will have eight groups of four teams each playing in a single-game round-robin format. The top two teams from each group progress to the single-match knockout stage from the round of 16 to the final
With the draw set for December, just two of the 32 teams are yet to be confirmed: one from South America, the other representing the host country.
–IANS