waroffutbol

  Several teams have reached the finals in the FIFA Club World Cup despite not being considered the favorites, making them the unlikely finalists in the tournament’s history. The 2025 FIFA CWC has come to the final four. As expected, the European sides are still dominating, with three clubs battling for two spots in the summit. The current UCL and UEFA Conference League winners, PSG and Chelsea, alongside the continental and global serial winner, Real Madrid, are taking the three berths in the semifinal, whereas the other one belongs to Brazil’s Fluminense. Renato Pantaluppi’s men were tipped with fortune in the quarterfinals. They only faced Al Hilal, which had downed Manchester City in an epic 4–3 comeback win in the round of 16. The Saudi Pro League side was expected to be the unlikely finalist in this CWC edition and go further, but sadly they failed. Simone Inzaghi’s men were unable to ease past Fluminense, as they were beaten 2–1. Had Al Hilal lost to Pep Guardiola’s me...

  The FIFA Club World Cup predecessor, the Intercontinental Cup, was once notorious for its dark years involving real violence on the pitch. The FIFA Club World Cup (CWC) might have just been held for the first time in the new millennium back in 2000. Yet, this tournament has a long history with shocking facts on and off the pitch. Its predecessor, the Intercontinental Cup, had an unbelievable tale in the late 1960s and 1970s, once raising concern about its future before being revitalised in the 1980s.  The Intercontinental Cup, not the one with ‘FIFA’ at the front, was once not recognised by the world football governing body despite being endorsed by the two strongest regional football confederations in the world, UEFA and CONMEBOL . It was only considered ‘a friendly match’ by FIFA. Yet, its prestige was still well recognised globally, as it featured the duel of the best clubs from Europe and South America. They are undoubtedly still the ones at the top level of internat...

  The South American clubs are no longer the favourite to end UEFA’s domination in the FIFA Club World Cup. The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is set to begin at the end of this week. This expanded edition is expected to bring more competitive games and rekindle heated rivalries at the latter stage between UEFA and CONMEBOL sides. However, the latter reason seems rather out of reach considering the decline of the South American teams. Their dipped performance in the tournament, which was once known in a one-off showdown between the UCL and Copa Libertadores champions, has been quite distressing. The last time CONMEBOL lifted the trophy was in 2012 when Corinthians snatched a scrappy 1-0 victory over Chelsea under Tite. Since then, Copa Libertadores champions have not always reached the final in the competition. In fact, in the past five editions, only three of them advanced to the summit. No wonder that many have doubts they could win again, including in this year’s edition when C...

  Several teams in European top leagues have been able to snatch their first major title in the past 15 years and even more since the millennium. The current 2024/25 campaign has been peculiar compared to the other seasons. The non favorite sides managed to lift trophies in European top five. Crystal Palace is the latest one to do so. The Eagles finally won their first ever major trophy in the club’s history last weekend. Thanks to their solid form since last season following the arrival of Oliver Glasner. The Austrian boss is the key figure in Eberechi Eze and Co’s rise. Last season, they were able to finish tenth in the league, their highest finish in the Premier League history. This year, Glasner’s men thumped Manchester City 1-0 in FA Cup final. Previously, Newcastle United and Bologna have ended their long title drought. The Magpies and Rossoblu dismantled Liverpool and AC Milan, respectively, in the League Cup and Coppa Italia final. In the Netherlands, Go Ahead Eagles...