FIFA’s revamped Club World Cup in 2025 will feature some of the globe’s most renowned clubs competing against each other.
The newly expanded 32-team tournament, scheduled for June and July in the United States, will see teams like Real Madrid and Manchester City — the latest UEFA Champions League winners — face off alongside iconic sides such as Boca Juniors and Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami.
What’s particularly notable is that the tournament also includes teams that have yet to claim a UEFA Champions League title, such as Atletico Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, and Red Bull Salzburg. However, there is no spot for six-time European champions Liverpool.
So, why hasn’t Arne Slot’s squad made the cut? Strictly Liverpool has the details.
Why won’t Liverpool compete in the 2025 Club World Cup?
Liverpool will miss out on the 2025 Club World Cup due to FIFA’s qualification rules. In short, their absence is due to the inclusion of Manchester City and Chelsea.
Earlier in 2024, FIFA decided that no more than two teams from a single country would be allowed to enter the tournament. Since the Champions League winners from 2021 to this year were guaranteed a spot, that left England’s two spots taken by City (2023 Champions League winners) and Chelsea, who triumphed in 2021.
Had another English club won last season’s Champions League, FIFA would have likely made an exception, allowing City, Chelsea, and that third Premier League team to feature in the Club World Cup. Unfortunately for Liverpool, they were competing in the Europa League in the 2023/24 season.
