Write, Nestor Díaz.
Formats and championships change as time goes by, giving way to new winds on the field and in the colorful stands of the world’s “giants.” I am referring on this occasion to the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, which is just around the corner, a few steps from your home. With 32 teams from all continents, the red carpet will be rolled out on June 14, with the curtain closing a month later. It is an unprecedented competition, where you will be able to watch a Brazilian team face off against a Spanish team, or an Argentine team “snatch” the flag from an English team, to name a few examples. It has become a true world cup, surely not to be repeated. The only things that remain unchanged are the sun, the direction of the rivers, and love.
“I’d rather have Barcelona than Inter Miami!” proclaims a colleague as he settles into his seat for another day. “It’s the rules, and Miami is the home team, brother, a ‘courtesy guest.’ Besides, they have Messi! They can’t let you steal the show on your own birthday.” He calmed his anger. It’s true that Barcelona from Spain deserves to compete in the World Cup for this season’s double, but those are the rules of this new movie. It will feature a short film of 63 games, eight groups of four teams each; the classification will be similar to a World Cup for national teams, starting with the round of 16 with extra time and penalties. It is at that stage that the mettle and hierarchy of the clubs called upon to lift the first cup in the new “RESTO BAR” will be seen. It will be a real party, for those of you who know how to kick a ball, and even if you don’t.
The lucky club will pocket up to $125 million, and the icing on the cake is that priority will be given to distributing $250 million to club soccer around the world. FIFA will separate the coffers of this World Cup and will not touch its reserves, thus managing clubs and national teams in different ways, with the same goal. Through this “business model,” $1 billion will be distributed among the 32 participating clubs, and the cherry on top is the significant solidarity payments around the globe. These are exorbitant figures, marketable for such a spectacle, so that Toni Kroos’ record remains unblemished (the most decorated player, with six trophies in this history). In the same vein, Bayern Munich is predicted to score its first goal, as it has not found the net in its two previous World Cups.
When the ball starts rolling at Hard Rock Stadium, the throats of South America will be ready to sing the goals of Palmeiras, Flamengo, Fluminense, Botafogo, River Plate, and Boca Juniors, who are eager to show the world that “I’m in charge here” and strike a blow against the Europeans. While it is true that Real Madrid is debuting a “new look” on the bench and traveling ready to save the season, PSG and Inter Milan, Champions League finalists, and Manchester City, seeking redemption, are the favorites on paper; the good thing is that this is soccer, and even with a rebound goal off your shin, you can win. We don’t care about that 24-karat gold; what really matters is the honor, the experience of conquering glory. May God hear us and may the cup travel south. Cross into the box and you have the ball!
