The UAE's Al Ain are set to receive a share of a $1 billion prize fund for competing in this summer’s Club World Cup.
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Fifa announced on Wednesday it will pay the total prize money to each of the 32 teams competing in the revamped tournament to be held in the United States.
The figure is significantly more than the prize money offered for either the last men's or women's World Cups.
As winners of the 2023/24 AFC Champions League, Al Ain won automatic qualification to the tournament. They were paired with English Premier League champions Manchester City, Wydad of Morocco and Italian giants Juventus in December's draw. The Garden City club's first Group G match is against City on June 22 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Asia's three other representatives are Saudi champions Al Hilal, Urawa Red Diamonds of Japan and South Korea's Ulsan. Egyptian giants and African champions Al Ahly will open the tournament on June 15 against Lionel Messi's Inter Miami. Tunisia's ES Tunis and Morocco's Wydad will also take part.
World football's governing body has given few details about the funding of the first edition of the 32-team tournament that will take place every four years. But it has signed up a broadcaster and major sponsors in recent weeks.
In a statement confirming the prize money on offer, Fifa said it expected to generate $2 billion in revenues from the expanded Club World Cup. It also confirmed that a women's edition will take place from 2028.
"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.
It is not yet clear how much clubs will receive for their participation but it will be a significant windfall. Previous reports have suggested figures in the region of $40m minimum, with possibly up to twice that for winning the tournament.
As well as committing $1bn for the teams participating, Fifa is understood to be setting aside an additional $100m for solidarity payments to clubs who have not qualified.
"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," Infantino added.
"Fifa's reserves, which are there for global football development, will remain untouched.”
British streaming service DAZN was awarded the exclusive global rights to the June 14-July 13 tournament in December with a source close to the negotiations saying the contract was worth around $1.05bn.
Fifa has also signed sponsorship contracts with Coca-Cola, Bank of America, Chinese electronics brand Hisense and Belgian brewers AB InBev.
By comparison the total prize money for the 2022 men's World Cup in Qatar was $440m, while for the 2023 Women's World Cup in New Zealand and Australia it was $110m.
This season's Uefa Champions League, with a new 36-club format, will pay a total €2.47bn to the clubs involved.
Player welfare
Fifa's expansion of the tournament has been met by widespread criticism, especially in Europe, largely due to concerns over player welfare.
The global footballers' union FIFPro and the European Leagues association filed a complaint with the European Commission in October against Fifa, accused of abusing its dominant position by packing the calendar.
The Champions League was also expanded by European governing body Uefa this season and some players, including Ballon d'Or winner Rodri and Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk, have raised the prospect of a strike.
"I think we are close to that. I think if you ask any player he will say the same," said Rodri when asked in September if there was a possibility of players going on strike, shortly before suffering a season-ending knee injury.
"It is not the opinion of Rodri or whatever. I think it's the general opinion of the players."
The tournament will feature 12 teams from Europe, six from South America and four each from Asia, Africa and North and Central America.
Auckland City and Inter Miami complete the line-up.
Not all the reaction has been negative, with Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique insisting "everyone" would want to play.
"Once every four years there's this new, extremely exciting competition. Everyone wants to go to the Club World Cup," he said last year.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has even suggested that he could prioritise it over the start of the 2025/26 Premier League season, which begins on the weekend of August 16-17.
City failed with a request to have their opening league fixture postponed to allow players a longer summer break after the Club World Cup.
Asked last month if he might rest his players for the tournament, Guardiola said: “No, I don’t think so. It is important for the club, financially and for the prestige.”
The tournament will be held at 12 venues across 11 cities in the United States, with the final at the MetLife Stadium, which will also host the 2026 World Cup final, in New Jersey.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
AUSTRALIA SQUADS
ODI squad: Aaron Finch (captain), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa
Twenty20 squad: Aaron Finch (captain), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa
Ain Issa camp:
- Established in 2016
- Houses 13,309 people, 2,092 families, 62 per cent children
- Of the adult population, 49 per cent men, 51 per cent women (not including foreigners annexe)
- Most from Deir Ezzor and Raqqa
- 950 foreigners linked to ISIS and their families
- NGO Blumont runs camp management for the UN
- One of the nine official (UN recognised) camps in the region
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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If you go
The flights
Emirates (www.emirates.com) and Etihad (www.etihad.com) both fly direct to Bengaluru, with return fares from Dh 1240. From Bengaluru airport, Coorg is a five-hour drive by car.
The hotels
The Tamara (www.thetamara.com) is located inside a working coffee plantation and offers individual villas with sprawling views of the hills (tariff from Dh1,300, including taxes and breakfast).
When to go
Coorg is an all-year destination, with the peak season for travel extending from the cooler months between October and March.
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The Bio
Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”
Holiday destination: “I like Paris very much, it’s a city very close to my heart.”
Book: “Das Kapital, by Karl Marx. I am not a communist, but there are a lot of lessons for the capitalist system, if you let it get out of control, and humanity.”
Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”
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Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
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1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
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Stuart Ritchie, director of wealth advice at AES International, says children cannot learn something overnight, so it helps to have a fun routine that keeps them engaged and interested.
“I explain to my daughter that the money I draw from an ATM or the money on my bank card doesn’t just magically appear – it’s money I have earned from my job. I show her how this works by giving her little chores around the house so she can earn pocket money,” says Mr Ritchie.
His daughter is allowed to spend half of her pocket money, while the other half goes into a bank account. When this money hits a certain milestone, Mr Ritchie rewards his daughter with a small lump sum.
He also recommends books that teach the importance of money management for children, such as The Squirrel Manifesto by Ric Edelman and Jean Edelman.
The biog:
From: Wimbledon, London, UK
Education: Medical doctor
Hobbies: Travelling, meeting new people and cultures
Favourite animals: All of them
The specs: 2019 BMW i8 Roadster
Price, base: Dh708,750
Engine: 1.5L three-cylinder petrol, plus 11.6 kWh lithium-ion battery
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
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Martin Sabbagh profile
Job: CEO JCDecaux Middle East
In the role: Since January 2015
Lives: In the UAE
Background: M&A, investment banking
Studied: Corporate finance
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Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
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• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
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Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
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Company name: Yeepeey
Started: Soft launch in November, 2020
Founders: Sagar Chandiramani, Jatin Sharma and Monish Chandiramani
Based: Dubai
Industry: E-grocery
Initial investment: $150,000
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Pakistan (1st innings) 181: Babar 71; Olivier 6-37
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Pakistan (2nd innings) 190: Masood 65, Imam 57; Olivier 5-59
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6.30pm: The Madjani Stakes (PA) Group 3 Dh175,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
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7.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh165,000 (D) 1,400m
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7.40pm: Maiden (TB) Dh165,000 (D) 1,600m
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8.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh190,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: My Catch, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
8.50pm: Dubai Creek Mile (TB) Listed Dh265,000 (D) 1,600m
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9.25pm: Handicap (TB) Dh190,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Golden Goal, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
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How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
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WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
