The 2025 revamped Club World Cup is an unknown quantity for Chelsea. FIFA are selling it as club football’s biggest prize but sceptic argue that it is essentially a glorified pre-season tournament.
The event in the United States, which will last a month and kick off in mid-June, will see 32 teams compete in the first version of what will now be a quadrennial tournament, as opposed to an annual one.
FIFA President, Gianni Infantino hands over the FIFA Club World Cup trophy to Cesar Azpilicueta of Chelsea following the FIFA Club World Cup UAE 20...
Photo by Francois Nel/Getty Images
Chelsea have qualified thanks to their Champions League triumph in 2021, while Man City will also represent England at the tournament.
The draw for the Club World Cup – complete with a guest spot for Donald Trump – took place last Friday and saw the Blues pitted against Flamengo, Club León and ES Tunis.
|---|---|---|---|---|
||Team 1|Team 2|Team 3|Team 4|
|Group A|Palmeiras|FC Porto|Al-Ahly|Inter Miami|
|Group B|Paris Saint-Germain|Atlético Madrid|Botafogo|Seattle Sounders|
|Group C|Bayern Munich|Auckland City|Boca Juniors|Benfica|
|Group D|Flamengo|Espérance Sportive de Tunisie|Chelsea|Club León|
|Group E|River Plate|Urawa Red Diamonds|Monterrey|Inter Milan|
|Group F|Fluminense|Borussia Dortmund|Ulsan|Mamelodi Sundowns|
|Group G|Manchester City|Wydad|Al-Ain|Juventus|
|Group H|Real Madrid|Al-Hilal|Pachuca|RB Salzburg|
FIFA have made a lot of noise about how the new tournament is the next big thing in football an will usurp the Champions League in terms of prestige.
However, until recently, world football’s governing body had struggled to attract sponsors and, most significantly, a TV deal for the Club World Cup.
For Chelsea, whose Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) compliance could depend on the bonus income from the tournament, that was lurking anxiety.
An infographic explaining how PSR (Profit and Sustainability Rules) work in the Premier League and UEFA
It meant they were essentially budgeting for zero income from the Club World Cup.
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Now, however, news that DAZN has paid around £750m for the exclusive rights to air the event will have been welcomed by Todd Boehly, Clearlake Capital and, of course, Enzo Maresca.
Sponsorships for the tournament are also now starting to roll in, with Hisense, AB InBev and Bank of America all announced as official partners in recent weeks.
With those partners estimated to be shelling out around £70m to have their brand associated with the competition, it might appear that the Club World Cup is set to be a goldmine for Chelsea.
Some reports this week have suggested as much as £60m in prize money could be available to the Blues.
At the other end of the spectrum, ex-Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas – who is in the know through his role with the European Club Association – says the actual total will be far more modest, starting around £13m.
So how valuable will the Club World Cup really be?
Chelsea’s annual commercial income – that is revenue from sponsorship, events and merchandise – stood at £210m at the last count.
An impressive figure in isolation but one which is some way short of the two Manchester clubs, Liverpool and Tottenham in the Premier League.
Chart showing Chelsea commercial income compared to Man United, Man City, Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham
The main improvement area is in the front-of-shirt department. For the second season in a row, Chelsea have failed to sign a shirt sponsor deal in time for the beginning of the campaign.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino meanwhile has sold the dream to sponsors with the somewhat spurious claim that the Club World Cup will be watched by 5 billion people worldwide.
If that is anywhere near accurate, it would represent a huge brand exposure opportunity for Chelsea and give them significant leverage in negotiations with a would-be front-of-shirt sponsors.
Speaking exclusively to TCC, Liverpool University football finance lecturer and industry insider Kieran Maguire suggested that Chelsea will use the month in the United States wisely.
“They won’t be unhappy with the figures we’re seeing from the Club World Cup.
“From Chelsea’s perspective, it is a zero-sum game to a large extent because they will have to make sacrifices in terms of their ability to arrange per-season tours.
Infographic showing Chelsea's revenue in recent years and the breakdown between commercial matchday and media income.
“The implications for 2025-26 – because Chelsea players won’t have the opportunity for proper R&R – will be big.
“We have seen a difference between the players who came back from the Euros and those who did not did not play. Haaland and Salah have started like a steam train. Foden and a few others have struggled.
Chelsea will be taking that into consideration as well. They will use the Club World Cup as an opportunity to do some commercial activity. We’re talking partnerships and sponsorships. That will be the main draw.
If they make progress in the Club World Cup, they will be able to showcase their talent in the US, which is a huge driver of commercial income.
“The difference between the growth in the economies of the US and UK at the moment is quite stark.”
Club World Cup: Where is the money coming from?
DAZN have paid £750m for the broadcast rights and will stream the Club World Cup for free – so where is the value for the broadcaster?
It has been heavily suggested in recent weeks that Saudi Arabia could be bailing out FIFA, who until now have struggled to attract a broadcaster, by funding the DAZN deal.
DAZN enjoy an excellent relationship with the Gulf state having partnered with them on Riyadh Season, a a huge sports and entertainment initiative in the kingdom.
Incidentally, news this week has also suggested that the Club World Cup be hosted in the US again in 2029 and then in Saudi Arabia in 2033.
Thomas Tuchel (R), Manager of Chelsea and Cesar Azpilicueta of Chelsea pose with the FIFA Club World Cup trophy in the dressing room following vic...
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
That would give Saudi a dry run ahead of the 2034 international World Cup, which FIFA have also awarded to the nation in a controversial selection process.
The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), the sovereign wealth fund that owns Newcastle United, also have billions of pounds of assets managed by Chelsea’s co-owners, Clearlake Capital.
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