The FIFA Club World Cup was played February 1-11 in Morocco with seven clubs teams who battled it out for the title of world champions.
The seven clubs included the defending champions of each region of the world, and an additional spot reserved for the host country. But the latter berth had to be reassigned for 2022, after Moroccan champions Wydad Casablanca also became African champions.
The 2023 tournament draw was held on Friday, January 13 (streamed on FIFA+) as the seven clubs found out their potential paths to the world title. The 2023 edition will be the last one played under the current format, making way for a new expanded version in June 2025 (more details below).
The Club World Cup returned to Morocco since it was last played there in 2014. The country was picked to serve as 2023 host, less than two months before the tournament, with two cities staging the matches: Tangier (Stade Ibn Batouta) and Rabat (Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium).
Only seven knockout matches were played to determine the world champion to succeed 2022 winners Chelsea. One of the seven matches finished level after 90 minutes, requiring extra time and ultimately being decided in a penalty shootout.
2023 FIFA Club World Cup match schedule
| Date | Round | Match |
|---|---|---|
| Wed, Feb. 1 | 1st Rd | Al Ahly 3-0 Auckland City |
| Sat, Feb. 4 | 2nd Rd | Seattle Sounders 0-1 Al Ahly |
| Sat, Feb. 4 | 2nd Rd | Wydad Casablanca 1-1 Al Hilal (Al Hilal advanced 5-3 on penalties) |
| Tue, Feb. 7 | Semi | Flamengo 2-3 Al Hilal |
| Wed, Feb. 8 | Semi | Al Ahly 1-4 Real Madrid |
| Sat, Feb. 11 | 3rd Place | Flamengo 4-2 Al Ahly |
| Sat, Feb. 11 | Final | Real Madrid 5-3 Al Hilal |
MORE: Chelsea capture 2022 FIFA Club World Cup on late penalty
Teams in 2023 FIFA Club World Cup
There were seven clubs which participated in the 2023 tournament. The list featured the club champions from six continents, plus an additional p[lace for the host nation's champion that instead was reassigned.
Since Moroccan champions Wydad Casablanca also won the African Champions League, thus automatically qualifying to the FIFA Club World Cup as African champions, their berth as hosts was passed to the African Champions League runners-up Al Ahly of Egypt.
| Region | Club | How Qualified |
|---|---|---|
| Africa | Wydad Casablanca (Morocco) | CAF Champions League winners |
| Africa | Al Ahly (Egypt) | CAF Champions League runners-up (Assigned host nation berth) |
| Asia | Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia) | AFC Champions League winners |
| Europe | Real Madrid (Spain) | UEFA Champions League winners |
| N. America | Seattle Sounders (USA) | CONCACAF Champions League winners |
| Oceania | Auckland City (New Zealand) | OFC Champions League |
| S. America | Flamengo (Brazil) | CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores winners |
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2023 FIFA Club World Cup fixtures schedule
The tournament kicked off with the first two rounds of matches involving the clubs from Africa, Oceania, Asia, and North America. The European (Real Madrid) and South American champions (Flamengo) entered the fray at the semifinal stage.
First Round
African runners-up Al Ahly (Egypt) comfortably beat Oceania champions Auckland City (New Zealand) and the Egyptian side advanced to the Second Round to play MLS side Seattle Sounders.
| Date | Round | Match | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wed, Feb. 1 | 1st Rd | Al Ahly 3-0 Auckland City | Highlights |
Second Round
Asian champions Al Hilal, African champions Wydad Casablanca, and North American champions Seattle Sounders joined first-round winner Al Ahly to determine which two teams would advance to the semifinals.
| Date | Round | Match | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat, Feb. 4 | 2nd Rd | Wydad Casablanca 1-1 Al Hilal (Al Hilal advanced 5-3 on penalties) | Highlights |
| Sat, Feb. 4 | 2nd Rd | Seattle Sounders 0-1 Al Ahly | Highlights |
Semifinals
The two favorites entered the competition at this stage, with Al Hilal shocking Flamengo (South America champions), and Real Madrid (European champions) handily defeating Egyptian side Al Ahly.
| Date | Round | Match | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tue, Feb. 7 | Semifinal | Flamengo 2-3 Al Hilal | Highlights |
| Wed, Feb. 8 | Semifinal | Al Ahly 1-4 Real Madrid | Highlights |
3rd Place Match
The two semifinal losers, Flamengo and Al Ahly, played for third place, with the Brazilian side picking up the consolation spot on the podium.
| Date | Round | Match | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat, Feb. 11 | 3rd Place | Flamengo 4-2 Al Ahly | Highlights |
Final
Real Madrid put on another goal-scoring show in the final against Al Hilal, though the Saudi Arabian side battled until the end.
| Date | Round | Match | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat, Feb. 11 | Final | Real Madrid 5-3 Al Hilal | Highlights |
FIFA Club World Cup expansion
On December 16, 2022 FIFA announced the launch of an expanded 32-team Club World Cup set for June 2025 and held in the summer every four years, similar to the World Cup for national teams.
It's still unclear how the 32 spots will be allocated to each region and what the qualifying criteria will be. But, FIFA president Gianni Infantino made clear their intention is that "they will be the best teams in the world".
Original plans for expansion of the tournament had called for a 24-team Club World Cup to be played in 2021, but that tournament never got off the ground due to scheduling conflicts and fixture congestion resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The new expanded tournament is set to replace the FIFA Confederations Cup, which in the past served as a test run for the men's World Cup host country the year before the tournament. That could explain why the USA is reportedly a potential host for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, one year prior to the 2026 men's FIFA World Cup.
FIFA Club World Cup champions all-time
Between 1960 and 2004 the club champions of Europe and South America faced off in a single-match showdown for the Intercontinental Cup, widely accepted as crowning the best club team in the world. Of those 43 editions held, a European side won 21 times and South American clubs were champions on 22 occasions.
But at the turn of the century, FIFA decided that it was time to expand and allow clubs from other continents to participate, launching the FIFA Club World Cup in 2000. After the collapse of FIFA's marketing partner ISL, FIFA had to put the idea on hiatus and resumed it in 2005, this time replacing the Intercontinental Cup for good.
Below is a full rundown of all the FIFA Club World Cup winners and runners-up since the current tournament format was introduced in 2000. Spanish side Real Madrid have won the trophy a record five times, adding their fifth title in 2023.
FIFA Club World Cup winners all-time
| Year | Host | Winner | Score | Runner-Up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Brazil | Corinthians | 0-0 (4-3 PKs) | Vasco da Gama |
| 2005 | Japan | Sao Paulo | 1-0 | Liverpool |
| 2006 | Japan | Internacional | 1-0 | Barcelona |
| 2007 | Japan | AC Milan | 4-2 | Boca Juniors |
| 2008 | Japan | Man United | 1-0 | LDU Quito |
| 2009 | UAE | Barcelona | 2-1 (a.e.t.) | Estudiantes |
| 2010 | UAE | Inter Milan | 3-0 | TP Mazembe |
| 2011 | Japan | Barcelona | 4-0 | Santos |
| 2012 | Japan | Corinthians | 1-0 | Chelsea |
| 2013 | Morocco | Bayern Munich | 2-0 | Raja Casablanca |
| 2014 | Morocco | Real Madrid | 2-0 | San Lorenzo |
| 2015 | Japan | Barcelona | 3-0 | River Plate |
| 2016 | Japan | Real Madrid | 4-2 (a.e.t.) | Kashima Antlers |
| 2017 | UAE | Real Madrid | 1-0 | Gremio |
| 2018 | UAE | Real Madrid | 4-1 | Al-Ain |
| 2019 | Qatar | Liverpool | 1-0 (a.e.t.) | Flamengo |
| 2020 | Qatar | Bayern Munich | 1-0 | Tigres UANL |
| 2022 | UAE | Chelsea | 2-1 (a.e.t.) | Palmeiras |
| 2023 | Morocco | Real Madrid | 5-3 | Al Hilal |
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