The bad news is that Bayern Munich was knocked out of the FIFA Club World Cup by Paris Saint-Germain in the FIFA Club World Cup quarter finals in Atlanta, Georgia and lost Jamal Musiala to a serious injury. The good news, on the contrary, if you even want to call it good news, is that Bayern now has a few weeks off before preseason preparations begin for the 2025/26 campaign. It’s a much-needed rest after what’s been a long and grueling matches that has seen the German Rekordmeister play a ridiculous number of matches, but other clubs that were at the Club World Cup played even more matches than Bayern.
Harry Kane got his first ever taste of the competition, let alone the new format of the tournament, and despite having lost out in cruel fashion to PSG, the England skipper enjoyed his time in the United States playing in different stadiums he’s never played at before.
“I thought the Club World Cup was really well run, really enjoyed it - enjoyed the stadiums, enjoyed the matches, different experiences. It’s one that I will be eager to play again in another four years,” the striker explained on the Cleats Club app (via @iMiaSanMia).
Paris Saint-Germain v FC Bayern München: Quarter-final - FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images
Between the smoldering temperatures in some of the host cities, bad weather, poor crowd attendances at group stage matches, and clubs being overplayed after long seasons, the Club World Cup certainly had its fair share of criticism. Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca was vocal about his concern for the amount of matches his Chelsea side had played this season ahead of the semi final win over Fluminense.
For Kane, it was just a new experience playing against clubs they might not ever otherwise have the chance to play. He finished the tournament with 3 goals and 1 assist from his 5 appearances and accepted closure for what’s been an incredibly long season that saw him win his first ever piece of competitive club silverware. “A wrap-up from the tournament. Obviously a disappointing end in a tough game, a close game and it’s not like it couldn’t have easily gone our way on a different day, but that’s football. It’s been a tough season. Some really good positives, obviously winning the league, and some close calls in the other competitions,” he rationalized.
For now, he’s very much looking forward to the break before the prep work for next season gets underway at the end of the month. “Thanks for all of the support as always. Time for a switch off now, have a nice break, spend some time away with the family, just really get away from everything and recharge. Obviously the new season is just around the corner, so we’ll look forward to that and be ready in a few weeks,” Kane closed.