Rose Bowl Selected as Venue for 2025 FIFA Club World Cup

The Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, is set to be one of the venues for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. Sources have indicated that FIFA aims to announce the complete list of locations in the coming weeks.

Alongside the Rose Bowl, other potential sites include Lumen Field in Seattle, Inter & Co Stadium in Orlando, Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, and Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey. However, none of these locations have been officially confirmed yet.

The Guardian was the first to disclose the venues for the Club World Cup, also revealing that MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, and an undisclosed site in the Philadelphia area are expected to be chosen.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has been a strong advocate for the Club World Cup as part of an effort for the organization to capture a larger share of the revenue generated from club competitions. The tournament was initially slated to expand to 24 teams in 2021 and take place in China, but plans were derailed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In June 2023, FIFA confirmed that the newly expanded Club World Cup will feature 32 teams and will take place across the United States from June 15 to July 13, 2025.

However, FIFA faces resistance from various stakeholders within the sport. Concerns have been raised by players, coaches, and unions—including FIFPRO and the Professional Footballers’ Association in England—over the increasing demands placed on players. Sources indicate that the Premier League has expressed worries about the scheduling of the Club World Cup during the summer transfer window, a time typically reserved for international competitions.

Furthermore, the U.S. soccer calendar is already crowded, with the Concacaf Gold Cup set to occur around the same time, from June 14 to July 6. In a strategic move, FIFA has planned for the Club World Cup to be held primarily on the East Coast while the Gold Cup will take place at venues mostly located on the West Coast.

The inclusion of the Seattle Sounders in the Gold Cup has complicated the logistics, resulting in Lumen Field possibly being added as a venue for the Club World Cup.

While FIFA introduced the tournament’s logo and audio signature on September 4, numerous details are still pending resolution.

In mid-July, FIFA announced that it was accepting bids for broadcast rights. This development came after negotiations with Apple reportedly stalled due to the tech company’s $1 billion offer, which was significantly less than FIFA’s $4 billion asking price. Recently, FIFA conducted a call with potential broadcasters to expedite discussions; however, little progress has emerged from those talks.

As excitement builds surrounding the tournament, many observers await further details regarding its venues, scheduling, and broadcasting arrangements as the date approaches.