Fans of the beautiful game are rejoicing as some of the world’s best soccer teams are in America for the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, with some of the tournament matches taking place at the famous Rose Bowl.
The Club World Cup tournament is a way for the best domestic teams from each FIFA federation to all play in one tournament for their share of a billion dollars; the winning team gets $125 million. This year’s edition features European giants such as Manchester City, Real Madrid and Inter Milan as well as smaller teams from New Zealand (Auckland City FC), Tunisia (ES Tunis), South Africa (Mamelodi Sundowns) the United Arab Emirates (Al-Ain) and more.
The first match of this year’s tournament was on Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami where Lionel Messi and his Inter Miami squad were held to a scoreless draw against Egyptian champions Al-Ahly.
On Sunday, a scoring record was broken when Bayern Munich beat Auckland City 10-0, although it should be noted that most of the latter side is made up of semi-professionals who work regular jobs in addition to playing for the team.
Sunday also saw two of Europe’s best teams, Atlético Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain – the latter of whom are this year’s UEFA Champions League winners – take each other on at the Rose Bowl. More than 80,000 people were said to have attended the match, which ended 4-0 to PSG.
That fixture is not the only prime matchup at the Rose Bowl this tournament, as there are five other group stage matches still to be played, including on Tuesday night, when Mexican side CF Monterrey plays Inter Milan, the UEFA Champions League runners-up. Additionally, Urawa Red Diamonds (Japan), Botafogo (Brazil) and Argentinian club River Plate are also making appearances in Pasadena.
Games being played at the Rose Bowl during this year’s Club World Cup include:
- June 17, 6 p.m.: CF Monterrey vs. Inter Milan
- June 19, 6 p.m.: Paris Saint-Germain vs. Botafogo
- June 21, 6 p.m.: River Plate vs. CF Monterrey
- June 23, 6 p.m.: Atlético Madrid vs. Botafogo
- June 25, 6 p.m.: Urawa Red Diamonds vs. CF Monterrey
Los Angeles’ very own LAFC was the final team to qualify for this year’s Club World Cup, which has come under some scrutiny as federal immigration raids and protests continue both in SoCal and across the country.
To see all the matchups across the entire tournament, click here.
The Club World Cup being hosted partly in L.A. is a good litmus test for next year’s FIFA World Cup, which is being hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico, as well as other large-scale sporting events such as the Olympics, which will be held in L.A. in 2028.
