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From Europe’s biggest stage to the global spotlight in the United States, the knockout phase of the Club World Cup is set to deliver fireworks. Fresh off their recent Champions League triumph, Paris Saint-Germain will face Bayern Munich, while Real Madrid, winners in 2024, will take on Borussia Dortmund—a rematch of last season’s final, where Carlo Ancelotti’s Real secured a 2-0 win with goals from Carvajal and Vinicius Junior. Carvajal is missing this US campaign due to injury, while Vinicius has scored once in four matches so far. Ancelotti has since passed the baton to Xabi Alonso, who is making his debut as Real Madrid’s head coach in this tournament.
PSG-Bayern is another Champions League classic, echoing the 2020 final, where the Bavarians triumphed 1-0 thanks to a Kingsley Coman header in the 59th minute. Coman, the former Juventus winger, is set to feature once again, having already tallied two goals and two assists in three Club World Cup matches. PSG’s attack that day featured Mbappé, Neymar, and Di Maria; today, under Luis Enrique, it’s a new generation with Doué, Barcola, and Kvaratskhelia, who dismantled Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami with a dominant 4-0 win in the previous round.
It may not be the Champions League, but in the United States, these Club World Cup showdowns promise top-level football and global spectacle.
