PHOTO GALLERY: RB Salzburg draw with Al-Hilal, Manchester City thrash Al-Ain at World Cup
Manchester City's Norwegian striker #09 Erling Haaland and Al Ain's Argentine midfielder #20 Matias Palacios fight for the ball during the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Group G football match between England's Manchester City and UAE's Al Ain FC at the Mercedes-Benz stadium in Atlanta. AFP
midfielder
Manchester City's Portuguese midfielder #27 Matheus Nunes and Al Ain's Argentine defender #36 Facundo Zabala fight for the ball during the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Group G football match between England's Manchester City and UAE's Al Ain FC at the Mercedes-Benz stadium in Atlanta. AFP
Manchester
Al Ain's Abdoul Karim Traore, left, and Manchester City's Nico Gonzalez fight for the ball during the Club World Cup Group G soccer match between Manchester City and Al Ain in Atlanta. AP
Manchester
Manchester City's Nico Gonzalez, left, and Al Ain's Soufiane Rahimi compete for the ball during the Club World Cup Group G soccer match between Manchester City and Al Ain in Atlanta. AP
Al Hilal
Al Hilal's Brazilian forward #11 Marcos Leonardo (L) shoots but fails to score as Salzburg's Danish defender #02 Jacob Rasmussen (C) stops the ball during the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Group H football match between Austria's FC Salzburg and Saudi's Al-Hilal at the Audi Field stadium in Washington, DC. AFP
Al Hilal
Al Hilal's Saudi defender #87 Hassan Al-Tambakti (L) fights for the ball with Salzburg's German defender #13 Frans Kratzig during the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Group H football match between Austria's FC Salzburg and Saudi's Al-Hilal at the Audi Field stadium in Washington, DC. AFP
Red Bull Salzburg
Salem Aldawsari #29 of Al Hilal is challenged by Nene Dorgeles #45 of FC Salzburg during the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 group H match between FC Red Bull Salzburg and Al Hilal at Audi Field on June 22, 2025 in Washington, DC. AFP
Red Bull Salzburg
Red Bull Salzburg's John Mellberg, left, and Al-Hilal's Sergej Milinkovic-Savic battle for the ball during the Club World Cup Group H soccer match between Salzburg and Al Hilal in Washington. AP
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Mbappe could make his Club World Cup debut after being listed as substitute against Juventus
Mbappe missed the first three games of the tournament with an illness. Alonso said Monday it was possible Mbappe could play in his first Club World Cup match in the knockout round, and the French star arrived with the team several hours before the game was set to begin at Hard Rock Stadium. Mbappe had a gastrointestinal illness before Real Madrid's opening Club World Cup match and was treated at a hospital. He sat out all three group matches as Madrid won two and drew the other. He walked onto the field ahead of Tuesday's match to an ovation from the fans in the soggy venue that had seen downpours throughout the afternoon. Mbappe's return brings star power to a tournament that took a hit when Lionel Messi and Inter Miami were eliminated in the round of 16 by Mbappe's and Messi's former club, Paris Saint-Germain. Madrid captain Dani Carvajal and defender Eder Militao were also set to return on Tuesday. Carvajal has not played since tearing his ACL and undergoing surgery last fall. Both were also listed as substitutes. Find more details on group standings, match schedules, and competition statistics (For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.) Short link:
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Reports: Messi Considers Leaving Inter Miami
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Al-Ahram Weekly
8 hours ago
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Saudi Arabia's great football experiment is paying off spectacularly at the Club World Cup
The oil-rich kingdom, which is spending billions of dollars to become a major player in the world's most popular sport, scored a big win on the field Monday when Al Hilal beat Premier League giant Manchester City 4-3 to advance to the quarterfinals. It was a seismic result in football terms; possibly the biggest upset of the tournament and precisely the type of statement Saudi Arabia has wanted to make since embarking on a project that will ultimately see it stage the World Cup in 2034. 'We wanted to show that Al Hilal has the talent, the power to be here,' said defender Kalidou Koulibaly, who was among a slew of star players paid fortunes to leave Europe's top clubs for the Saudi Pro League in recent years. Superstar signings and ones that got away The biggest of them all was Cristiano Ronaldo, who completed one of the most stunning moves in football history when joining Al Nassr for a reported salary of up to $200 million a year in 2022. That deal prompted a spectacular recruitment drive by Saudi teams — backed by the kingdom's sovereign wealth fund — and in came superstars like Neymar and Karim Benzema, while audacious attempts were made to sign Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe. Confirmation that Saudi Arabia had won the right to host the World Cup came in December. On the field, the Club World Cup was the first chance for the country to make a global statement about the growth of its domestic game, which is largely unheralded outside of Asia. It is likely why Al Hilal — Saudi Arabia's most successful team — was so eager to make another marquee signing before the tournament began and tried, but failed, to lure Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes. It pulled off a coup by hiring coach Simone Inzaghi. The Italian arrived after leading Inter Milan to a second Champions League final in three seasons and he is already making a mark with his new team after drawing 1-1 against Real Madrid in the group stage and then beating City. 'We had to do something extraordinary because we knew how good Manchester City are, we knew we had to climb Mount Everest without oxygen, and we were great," Inzaghi said. Saudi Arabian football has faced doubts The broader picture is what Al Hilal's run says about the standard of football in Saudi Arabia, which has been dismissed by some as a cash grab for players, who can earn far more than if they'd remained in Europe. 'Let's see now if they will criticize us after these games," said midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, who joined Al Hilal from Italian team Lazio. 'It's not like how they are speaking about the league.' Despite recruiting so many players from Europe's top clubs — including Champions League winners N'Golo Kante, Riyad Mahrez and Roberto Firmino — it is difficult to judge the quality of the Saudi League. To put Al Hilal's run into context: while it may have won a record 19 league titles and four Asian championships, it is not the Saudi Arabia's reigning national champion, having been beaten to the title by Benzema's Al-Ittihad last season. Another Saudi team, Al-Ahli, which counts former Liverpool forward Firmino and ex Manchester City winger Mahrez among its players, won the Asian Champions League this year. Ronaldo, meanwhile, is yet to win the title in three attempts with Al Nassr — pointing to the depth of strength in the league. Al Hilal's performances have also come despite releasing Brazil great Neymar in January and with leading scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic having played no part so far because of injury. Can Al Hilal win the Club World Cup? The question now is how far Al Hilal can go. Next up is Brazil's Fluminense in the quarterfinals in Orlando on Friday. City's exit — along with Inter Milan's defeat to Fluminense — has opened up that side of the draw, which also features Palmeiras and Chelsea. On paper it looks like the favorable side of the draw, with Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain on the other side. But the success of Brazilian teams has been another theme of the tournament and Al Hilal will have to beat at least one more if it is to advance to the final. Inzaghi, however, is used to overachieving. His two Champions League finals with Inter Milan came despite having an aging team and relying on savvy deals in the transfer market to pick up free agents and veteran players. Inter's victory against Barcelona in the semifinals of this year's competition was one of the all-time classic contests — winning 7-6 on aggregate. Al Hilal's impressive run has come after Inzaghi spent just one week training with the team before the tournament. Even if it is eliminated in the next round, a quarterfinals appearance would represent an outstanding campaign for a team that was not expected to compete for the title. Sportswashing accusations remain Saudi Arabia's growing influence on sport — which also includes LIV Golf, world championship boxing, F1 and the buyout of Premier League team Newcastle — will continue to raise accusations it is 'sportswashing' its reputation. Amnesty international called it 'reckless' to grant it the World Cup over concerns about the country's human rights record. But its investment in sport is undoubtedly paying off and Al Hilal's run is succeeding in raising the profile of its football league. Find more details on group standings, match schedules, and competition statistics (For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.) Short link:
