Real Madrid had to issue a public statement clarifying that “at no time” had they ever considered not participating as the reigning European champions in the next FIFA Club World Cup. This announcement came after manager Carlo Ancelotti walked back his comments, quoted by an Italian newspaper, suggesting that Madrid would not be involved.

In an interview with Il Giornale, Ancelotti was quoted as saying: “FIFA can forget it. The club and the footballers won’t participate in that tournament. One Real Madrid game is worth €20 million (£17m/$22m), and FIFA wants to give us that sum for the entire tournament. No way. Like us, other clubs will refuse the invitation.”

Both Ancelotti and Real Madrid quickly addressed the backlash. The club’s official statement read: “Real Madrid CF announces that at no time has its participation in the new Club World Cup to be organised by FIFA in the upcoming 2024/2025 season been questioned. Therefore, our club will compete, as planned, in this official competition that we face with pride and with the utmost enthusiasm to make our millions of fans around the world dream again with a new title.”

On X, Ancelotti posted: “In my interview with Il Giornale, my words about the FIFA Club World Cup were not interpreted in the way I intended. Nothing could be further from my interest than to reject the possibility of playing in a tournament that I consider could be a great opportunity to continue fighting for big titles with Real Madrid.”

The FIFA Club World Cup has undergone significant changes, transitioning from an annual mini-tournament for seven teams (six continental champions and one host representative) held over a few days in December to a supersized event with 32 clubs. This new format will be a month-long quadrennial summer event, starting in June 2025. Additionally, FIFA has introduced a new version of the old Intercontinental Cup, which will serve as a more direct replacement for the previous Club World Cup, maintaining its annual December schedule and smaller format. The original Intercontinental Cup, held from 1960 to 2004, featured matches between the European and South American champions before merging with FIFA.

Real Madrid is set to welcome Kylian Mbappe and Endrick, elevating last season’s European champions to new heights. However, neither player is expected to join Ancelotti’s team for their first game of a summer tour in the United States on July 31, due to their participation in Euro 2024 and Copa America, respectively.

Jude Bellingham

This season he played in total 11 times for 994 minutes for Champions League.

Jude Bellingham scored 4 goals for Real Madrid. He procured 5 assists. He received 2 yellow cards and no red cards.

His team is currently 1st in Champions League. In the last match Real Madrid won 2-0 against Borussia Dortmund.

Real Madrid performance and stats

Real Madrid is currently 1st in the Champions League with 18 points.

In the last 12 games, it has won 9 times and drawn 3 times. In its last match, Real Madrid won 0-2 against Borussia Dortmund.​​

It has a positive goal difference after scoring 16 goals and conceding 7.​