The competition at the Club World Cup is set to shrink from 32 teams down to 16 over the next week as the final group stage fixtures are contested across the United States. These crucial matches will pave the way for the knockout rounds, which are scheduled to commence on Saturday.
As anticipated, the Round of 16 is expected to feature primarily teams from Europe and South America, although the tournament hasn`t been without its surprises. South American teams have collectively suffered just one loss so far in the competition. Flamengo, for example, is among the few teams that have already secured their passage to the next stage with a game in hand, following victories against Esperance de Tunis and Chelsea.
Meanwhile, Inter Miami is strongly positioned to be the sole team from outside these dominant continents to reach the last 16, thanks to their unexpected 2-1 triumph over Porto. However, most of the teams widely expected to advance have yet to officially clinch their spots, setting the stage for a dramatic conclusion to the group stage.
Club World Cup Tiebreakers
When teams are level on points in the group stage, their ranking is determined by the following criteria:
- Points earned in group stage matches
- Head-to-head results between the tied teams
- Goal difference in matches between the tied teams
- Goals scored in matches between the tied teams
- Overall goal difference in all group stage matches
- Overall goals scored in all group stage matches
- Disciplinary points (based on yellow and red cards)
- Drawing of lots
Group A Scenarios
Palmeiras advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win or a draw against Inter Miami
- A loss to Inter Miami AND Al Ahly wins against Porto OR Porto wins against Al Ahly AND Palmeiras has a better goal difference than Porto
Inter Miami advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win or a draw against Palmeiras
- A loss to Palmeiras AND Porto wins against Al Ahly OR Inter Miami has a better goal difference than Al Ahly
Porto advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Al Ahly AND Palmeiras loses to Inter Miami AND Porto has a better goal difference than Palmeiras
Al Ahly advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Porto AND Inter Miami loses to Palmeiras AND Al Ahly has a better goal difference than Inter Miami
Group B Scenarios
Botafogo advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win or a draw against Atletico Madrid
- A loss to Atletico Madrid AND Paris Saint-Germain loses to Seattle Sounders
Paris Saint-Germain advances 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 advances 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 loses to Seattle Sounders
Seattle Sounders advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Paris Saint-Germain by three or more goals AND Atletico Madrid loses to Botafogo
Group C Scenarios
Bayern Munich: Qualified for the round of 16
Benfica advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win or a draw against Bayern Munich
- A loss to Bayern Munich AND Boca Juniors draws or loses against Auckland City
Boca Juniors advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Auckland City AND Benfica loses to Bayern Munich AND Boca Juniors has a better goal difference than Benfica
Auckland City: Eliminated from the competition
Group D Scenarios
Flamengo: Qualified for the round of 16
Chelsea advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win or a draw against Esperance de Tunis
Esperance de Tunis advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Chelsea
LAFC: Eliminated from the competition
Group E Scenarios
River Plate advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Inter
- A draw against Inter AND Monterrey draws or loses against Urawa Red Diamonds
Inter advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win or a draw against River Plate
- A loss to River Plate AND Monterrey draws or loses against Urawa Red Diamonds
Monterrey advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Urawa Red Diamonds AND River Plate loses to Inter OR Inter loses to River Plate OR a goalless draw occurs between River Plate and Inter
Urawa Red Diamonds: Eliminated from the competition
Group F Scenarios
Fluminense advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win or a draw against Mamelodi Sundowns
- A loss to Mamelodi Sundowns AND Borussia Dortmund loses to Ulsan HD by the same or a larger margin as Fluminense`s loss
Borussia Dortmund advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win or a draw against Ulsan HD
- A loss to Ulsan HD AND Fluminense wins or draws against Mamelodi Sundowns
Mamelodi Sundowns advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Fluminense AND Borussia Dortmund loses 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 advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win or a draw against RB Salzburg
- A loss to RB Salzburg AND Al-Hilal draws or loses against Pachuca
RB Salzburg advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win or a draw against Real Madrid
- A loss to Real Madrid AND Al-Hilal loses against Pachuca
Al-Hilal advances to the round of 16 with:
- A win against Pachuca AND Real Madrid loses to RB Salzburg OR RB Salzburg loses to Real Madrid
Pachuca: Eliminated from the competition
