Real Madrid have refuted claims that they will decline an invitation to participate in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.
This follows remarks made by manager Carlo Ancelotti, suggesting the Spanish giants might boycott the tournament due to a pay dispute.
The competition is scheduled to expand to 32 teams and span four weeks in the US after the 2024-25 season, with Madrid, Manchester City, and Chelsea all expected to compete.
Ancelotti’s comments, however, cast uncertainty over Madrid’s involvement, as he told Il Giornale that the team had no plans to play due to FIFA’s insufficient financial offer, speculating that other teams might follow suit.
In response, Madrid released a statement affirming their full intention to participate in the competition, which they have won five times in the last nine years.
The statement read, “Real Madrid CF announces that at no time has its participation in the new Club World Cup to be organised by FIFA in the upcoming 2024/2025 season been questioned.
“Therefore, our club will compete, as planned, in this official competition that we face with pride and with the utmost enthusiasm to make our millions of fans around the world dream again with a new title.”
Following the ealier interview, Ancelotti clarified on Instagram that his earlier quotes had been misunderstood.
“In my interview with Il Giornale, my words on the Club World Cup were not interpreted in the way that I intended,” he wrote.
“Nothing could be further from the truth than rejecting the possibility of playing in a tournament that I consider could be a great opportunity to continue fighting for big titles with Real Madrid.”
His statement on Instagram contradicted the quotes attributed to him by Il Giornale, where the Italian publication reported him saying, “FIFA forgets that the clubs and players will not participate in that tournament.”
“A single Real Madrid match is worth €20million (£17m) and they want to give us that money for the entire competition. Negative.
“Real Madrid, like other clubs, we will decline the invitation.”
Madrid now appear poised to join Chelsea and Manchester City—England’s two representatives in the tournament—following their Champions League victories in 2021 and 2023 respectively.
These three teams are among the 12 European nations invited to the competition, which includes the winners of Europe’s premier trophy from each of the past four seasons.
The remaining European slots are allocated based on clubs’ UEFA rankings over the past four years.
Joining them will be four teams from Asia and Africa each, along with six from South America and four from North America.
Oceania has one spot, and the final place goes to an MLS side on behalf of the host nation.
Host cities in the US are yet to be determined. The 32 teams will be divided into eight groups, with the top two from each group advancing to the last-16 stage.
FIFA’s decision to expand the Club World Cup has faced criticism in recent weeks due to concerns over player welfare.
Premier League and LaLiga chiefs have threatened to boycott the competition, accusing FIFA of ‘killing the game’ by adding more matches to an already-packed football calendar.
PFA boss Maheta Molango even suggested that legal action could be taken against FIFA if they don’t reconsider their plans.
“Those who run the game need to listen,” he told The Sun. “If they don’t, then as unions, we have a responsibility to the players to take action—and the legal route is the next step. The governing bodies have had every chance to meaningfully engage with us on this, but they have failed to do so. Current player workloads are unsustainable.”
Manchester City CEO, Ferran Soriano, also expressed concerns, indicating that the Premier League champions may consider whether participating is in their best interests, given the strain of a 32-team format on fixture scheduling.
However, PSG owner Nasser Al-Khelaifi has affirmed his side’s commitment to the competition, stating that the Club World Cup will be ‘bigger than the World Cup’.
