FIFA has officially confirmed the prize money for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, with participating clubs such as Mamelodi Sundowns and Wydad Athletic Club now guaranteed a share of $1 billion (R19.3 billion) at the tournament.
The revamped 32-team Club World Cup is just over three months away from kick-off, as the tournament will take place in the United States from 14 June to 13 July 2025.
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Thirty-two teams from six confederations around the globe have been drawn into eight groups, each containing four teams.
As is already known, CAF will have four representative clubs at the event: Sundowns, Wydad, Al Ahly, and Espérance de Tunis.
The four African sides, along with the other participants, are now guaranteed a massive payday at the tournament, as FIFA has pledged R18.3 billion in prize money, although it has yet to be announced how it will be allocated.
"The FIFA Club World Cup will not only be the pinnacle of club football, but also a vivid demonstration of solidarity that will benefit clubs at large to a scale that no other competition has ever done," said FIFA President Gianni Infantino at a FIFA Council meeting on Wednesday.
"All revenue generated by the tournament will be distributed to the participating clubs and via club solidarity across the world, as FIFA will not keep a single dollar. FIFA's reserves, which are there for global football development, will remain untouched.
"At the same time, we are making a record investment of almost USD 2.3 billion (R42 billion) in the FIFA Forward Programme during the 2023-2026 cycle, which means that by 2026 we will have made the unprecedented amount of up to USD 5.1 billion (R93 billion) available for football development since 2016."
The confirmed prize money makes the Club World Cup the most lucrative football competition ever, dwarfing the $440 million (R8 billion) prize fund for the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
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By Lukhanyo Mtuta
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