Club World Cup: Benfica's opponents

DRAW

Benfica found out the opponents it will face in the group stage of the first edition of the Club World Cup, to be held in the United States from June 15 to July 13, 2025. The draw - which President Rui Costa attended - took place on Thursday, December 5, at 6 pm continental time, in Miami. The Eagles are in Group C with Bayern Munich (Germany), Auckland City (New Zealand) and Boca Juniors (Argentina).

The Eagles are one of 32 competitors representing each of the six international confederations - AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North, Central America and the Caribbean), CONMEBOL (South America), OFC (Oceania) and UEFA (Europe) - and are placed in pot 2 alongside seven European teams, avoiding the following teams in the group stage: Chelsea, Inter, Borussia Dortmund, Atlético de Madrid, Juventus, FC Porto and FC Salzburg.

Teams from the same confederation cannot play each other at this stage of the competition, except UEFA teams. Benfica, the 10th-ranked European team, will meet a team from their continent from pot 1, in this case Manchester City, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich or Paris Saint-Germain. Here's the list of participants:

• UEFA: Benfica (Portugal), Real Madrid (Spain), Atlético de Madrid (Spain), Bayern Munich (Germany), Borussia Dortmund (Germany), Chelsea (England), Manchester City (England), Paris Saint-Germain (France), Inter (Italy), Juventus (Italy), FC Porto (Portugal) and FC Salzburg (Austria)

• CONMEBOL: Palmeiras (Brazil), Flamengo (Brazil), Fluminense (Brazil), Botafogo (Brazil), River Plate (Argentina) and Boca Juniors (Argentina)

• CONCACAF: Monterrey (México), Club León (México), Pachuca (México), Seattle Sounders (United States) and Inter Miami (United States)

• AFC: Al-Hilal (Saudi Arabia), Urawa Red Diamonds (Japan), Al Ain (United Arab Emirates) and Ulsan (South Korea)

• CAF: Al Ahly (Egypt), Wydad (Morocco), ES Tunis (Tunisia) and Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa)

• OFC: Auckland City (New Zealand)

The two best teams from each group go through to the round of 16, which continues in a knockout system - with a 30-minute overtime period and a penalty shootout if necessary - until the winner is determined. Unlike the World Cup, there is no match to determine the 3rd and 4th place finishers.

The 63 matches will be played in 12 stadiums and the final will be held at the MetLife Stadium in New York, New Jersey:

• Mercedes-Benz Stadium – Atlanta

• TQL Stadium – Cincinnati

• Bank of America Stadium – Charlotte

• Rose Bowl Stadium – Los Angeles

• Hard Rock Stadium – Miami

• GEODIS Park – Nashville

• MetLife Stadium – New York

• Camping Word Stadium – Orlando

• Inter&Co Stadium – Orlando

• Lincoln Financial Field – Philadelphia

• Lumen Field – Seattle

• Audi Field – Washington

Each club can register 35 players (a minimum of three goalkeepers included) and select 26 for each match. The matches will be played at least 72 hours apart.