Club World Cup: The must-watch fixtures as new FIFA tournament kicks off | OneFootball

The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is officially underway as the first of 48 group stage games kicked off in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The tournament feels like a shameless money grab and vanity project by Gianni Infantino, hosted in the United States against the backdrop of rising political tensions and horrific treatment of non-nationals.

On top of that, the tournament does not seem to have grabbed the public imagination, with FIFA struggling to sell tickets, the prices of which are tumbling by the day.

And yet, for clubs outside Europe, this competition provides a much yearned for platform to play against the best teams in the world. Its previous iteration was uninspired and lacklustre; this newly formatted one at least provides some tantalising cross continental matchups.

We won’t be glued to every match over the next month, but we have picked out four that we are excited to see.

FIFA Club World Cup: The must-watch group stage fixtures

PSG vs Atletico Madrid

8pm BST – Sunday, June 15

In their first outing since winning the Champions League, PSG will face off against Atletico Madrid. Luis Enrique’s men were outstanding that night in Munich, thrashing Inter Milan in the most one-sided final in the competition’s history.

Paris are an incredibly good team to watch and it will be fascinating to see how Diego Simeone’s men match up against them. They are taking the competition very seriously too, so expect a competitive contest.

Read – FIFA Club World Cup: How to watch every game in the UK

Flamengo vs Chelsea

7pm BST – Friday, June 20

If there is one South American that could go far in the Club World Cup, it’s Flamengo. The 2022 Copa Libertadores champions take these tournaments seriously, as evidence by the fact they still sing about their Intercontinental Cup win over Liverpool in 1981.

Chelsea will come up against a few familiar faces when they take on the Brazilian Serié A leaders. The team are managed by former defender Filipe Luis and they just signed midfielder Jorginho, a member of the 2021 Champions League-winning side, from Arsenal.

Bayern Munich vs Boca Juniors

2am BST – Friday, June 20

Another matchup between Europe and South America, this will be the first time Bayern Munich and Boca Juniors have ever met in competitive action.

The Bundesliga champions have an abundance of attacking talent should have too much for Boca, who are joint-top of the Argentine Primera Division but are lacking in quality. Edinson Cavani is their star man, but has been struggling for form of late.

If we’re being honest, this pick is mostly about the novelty of seeing two iconic clubs coming together on the world stage.

Read – Club World Cup: Five exciting young talents to watch

Inter Miami vs Palmeiras

2am – Monday, June 23

It’s a shame that we might not get to see Lionel Messi come up against Boca or River Plate, but the next best thing is a game against a Brazilian side.

Palmeiras are probably the second strongest South American participant after Flamengo and will be gunning for their first ever intercontinental title. They boast some impressive talents, such as former Barcelona striker Vitor Roque, Uruguayan playmaker Facundo Torres and wonderkid Estevao, who will join Chelsea after the competition.

For all of their star names, Inter Miami are, in truth, a mediocre MLS outfit who were handed a golden ticket because Infantino wanted Messi to be involved. The diminutive attacker will need to put on a herculean performance to pull off an upset here, but you know he has it in his locker, making this a compelling watch.

Read – Club World Cup: Six veterans set to star this summer

See Also – Club World Cup: Six new signings to look out for

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