Over the next week, the FIFA Club World Cup group stage concludes across the U.S., narrowing the field from 32 teams to 16 and setting the stage for the knockout rounds beginning Saturday.
As anticipated, the Round of 16 will likely be dominated by teams from Europe and South America, although the tournament hasn`t been without its surprises. South American teams have collectively suffered only one defeat so far. Flamengo is among the few teams that have already secured their place in the next round with a match remaining, following victories over Esperance de Tunis and Chelsea.
Notably, Inter Miami is well-positioned to be the sole team outside of Europe and South America to reach the last 16, thanks to their unexpected 2-1 win against Porto. However, many teams favored to advance have not yet confirmed their qualification, leading to potentially dramatic final group stage matches.
Club World Cup Tiebreaker Rules
If teams are level on points in the group stage, ties are broken using the following criteria:
- Group stage points
- Head-to-head record in matches between the tied teams
- Goal difference in matches between the tied teams
- Goals scored in matches between the tied teams
- Overall group stage goal difference
- Overall group stage goals scored
- Disciplinary points (based on yellow and red cards)
- Drawing of lots
Group Stage Scenarios
Group A scenarios
Palmeiras advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win or draw against Inter Miami
- A loss to Inter Miami AND Al Ahly wins against Porto OR Porto wins against Al Ahly AND Palmeiras wins on goal difference against Porto
Inter Miami advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win or draw against Palmeiras
- A loss to Palmeiras AND Porto wins against Al Ahly OR Inter Miami wins on goal difference against Al Ahly
Porto advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Al Ahly AND Palmeiras loss to Inter Miami AND Porto wins on goal difference against Palmeiras
Al Ahly advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Porto AND Inter Miami loss to Palmeiras AND Al Ahly wins on goal difference against Inter Miami
Group B scenarios
Botafogo advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win or draw against Atletico Madrid
- A loss to Atletico Madrid AND Paris Saint-Germain loss to Seattle Sounders
Paris Saint-Germain advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Seattle Sounders
- A draw against Seattle Sounders AND Botafogo wins or draws against Atletico Madrid
- A loss to Seattle Sounders AND Botafogo wins against Atletico Madrid AND tiebreakers favor Paris Saint-Germain
Atletico Madrid advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Botafogo AND Paris Saint-Germain draws or loses against Seattle Sounders
- A draw against Botafogo AND Paris Saint-Germain loss to Seattle Sounders
Seattle Sounders advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Paris Saint-Germain by three or more goals AND Atletico Madrid loss to Botafogo
Group C scenarios
Bayern Munich: Qualified for the round of 16
Benfica advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win or draw against Bayern Munich
- A loss to Bayern Munich AND Boca Juniors draws or loses against Auckland City
Boca Juniors advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Auckland City AND Benfica loss to Bayern Munich AND Boca Juniors wins on goal difference against Benfica
Auckland City: Eliminated from the competition
Group D scenarios
Flamengo: Qualified for the round of 16
Chelsea advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win or draw against Esperance de Tunis
Esperance de Tunis advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Chelsea
LAFC: Eliminated from the competition
Group E scenarios
River Plate advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Inter
- A draw against Inter AND Monterrey draws or loses against Urawa Red Diamonds
Inter advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win or draw against River Plate
- A loss to River Plate AND Monterrey draws or loses against Urawa Red Diamonds
Monterrey advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Urawa Red Diamonds AND River Plate loss to Inter OR Inter loss to River Plate OR a goalless draw between River Plate and Inter
Urawa Red Diamonds: Eliminated from the competition
Group F scenarios
Fluminense advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win or draw against Mamelodi Sundowns
- A loss to Mamelodi Sundowns AND Borussia Dortmund loss to Ulsan HD by the same or a larger margin than Fluminense`s loss
Borussia Dortmund advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win or draw against Ulsan HD
- A loss to Ulsan HD AND Fluminense wins or draws against Mamelodi Sundowns
Mamelodi Sundowns advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Fluminense AND Borussia Dortmund loss to Ulsan HD
Ulsan HD: Eliminated from the competition
Group G scenarios
Juventus: Qualified for round of 16
Manchester City: Qualified for round of 16
Wydad Casablanca: Eliminated from the competition
Al-Ain: Eliminated from the competition
Group H scenarios
Real Madrid advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win or draw against RB Salzburg
- A loss to RB Salzburg AND Al-Hilal draws or loses against Pachuca
RB Salzburg advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win or draw against Real Madrid
- A loss to Real Madrid AND Al-Hilal loss to Pachuca
Al-Hilal advance to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Pachuca AND Real Madrid loss to RB Salzburg OR RB Salzburg loss to Real Madrid
Pachuca: Eliminated from the competition
