Chelsea are soon set to learn who they will face in next summer's Club World Cup held in the United States. The draw for the 32-team tournament will take place on Thursday evening, with the likes of Real Madrid, Manchester City and Bayern Munich all involved.
The competition, to be contested between June 15 and July 13 in 2025, comprises the very best football teams across the globe to compete for the right to call themselves world champions. For this new-look version of the event, teams automatically qualify if they have won a continental club competition across one of the four most-recent seasons.
As the Blues famously overcame Premier League champions City in the 2021 Champions League final, they are eligible to feature in the tournament across the pond next summer. To fill out the remaining spots, the highest-ranking clubs in their respective continental ranking systems are also included.
As such, the likes of Palmeiras, RB Salzburg, Monterrey and Boca Juniors are just some of the clubs that will be involved. With the draw to be finalised soon, teams will see their group drawn up based on their respective pot. City, Real, Bayern and Paris Saint-Germain are the big teams in Pot 1.
They will be joined by Flamengo, Palmeiras, River Plate and Fluminense. Chelsea, meanwhile, are in Pot 2 with Borussia Dortmund, Inter Milan, FC Porto, Atletico Madrid, Benfica, Juventus and RB Salzburg.
A number of domestic league winners then feature in Pot 3 with Saudi Pro League holders Al-Hilal, South Korean champions Ulsan HD, Egyptian outfit Al Ahly, Moroccan outfit Wydad Casablanca, Monterrey and Leon of Mexico, Boca Juniors and Botafogo all to be picked out.
And finally in Pot 4, Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez's Inter Miami are included along with their MLS franchise Seattle Sounders, in addition to Urawa Red Diamonds, Al-Ain, Hope of Tunis, Mamelodi Sundowns, Pachuca and Auckland City.
The reason for such a vast number of nations being represented is because FIFA rules state a maximum of two teams from the same country can take part. Chelsea and the clubs set to participate have already been warned that taking their strongest possible squad to the tournament is a requirement.
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Chelsea flag prior the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final Leg One match between Chelsea FC and Real Madrid at Stamford Bridge. (Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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