Club World Cup 2025: Matchday 1 Preview

The new Club World Cup kicks off, lasting a month and promising blockbuster intercontinental matchups between champions from Europe, South America, Africa, Asia, and beyond.

Let’s start with the current Champions League winner, Paris Saint-Germain, who will face a tough challenge against a rival from their same confederation: Atlético Madrid.

In one intercontinental clash, Real Madrid will face Al-Hilal, a team loaded with players who have a European background.

Meanwhile, two South American giants, Boca Juniors and Palmeiras, will face off against the two biggest clubs in Portuguese football: Benfica and Porto, respectively.

At Gambyl Exchange, you can explore all the predictions for the Club World Cup 2025, the final bets for this Matchday, and the odds for each match.

Club World Cup Matchday 1: PSG vs. Atlético Madrid

PSG is coming off a historic season, winning everything in France and capping it off by conquering the Champions League for the first time after crushing Inter 5-0.Luis Enrique has built a great team, with Ousmane Dembélé —a Ballon d’Or contender—leading on the field, supported by young talents Désire Doué, Bradley Barcola, and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.

On the other hand, Atlético Madrid didn’t win any titles. They finished third in La Liga, were eliminated in the Copa del Rey semifinals, and exited the Champions League in the Round of 16 after a controversial penalty by Julián Álvarez. The Argentine striker is currently in top form and stands as the main threat for Diego Simeone’s side.

PSG vs. Atlético Madrid Betting Pick: PSG

Club World Cup Matchday 1: Palmeiras vs. Porto

Palmeiras didn’t have the 2024 they expected, getting knocked out in the Round of 16 of the Copa Libertadores and finishing as runners-up in the Brasileirão. In their league, they recently lost two important matches against Flamengo (0-2) and Cruzeiro (2-1), dropping from first to fourth place. On their side, they have coach Abel Ferreira, who is Portuguese and faced this opponent while managing Sporting Lisbon and Sporting Braga, so he knows them well. Young star Estêvão will play his last matches with the ‘Verdão’ in this tournament before joining Chelsea.

Porto wrapped up a disappointing year, finishing third in the Portuguese league, which means they’ll be playing in the Europa League next season instead of the Champions League. It’s undoubtedly a tough blow for the ‘Dragão,’ who just spent 15 million euros on Spanish midfielder Gabri Veiga, 23, who played last season at Al-Ahli.

Palmeiras vs. Porto Betting Pick: Draw

Club World Cup Matchday 1: Boca Juniors vs. Benfica

Boca Juniors are not going through their best moment. They were eliminated in the quarterfinals of the Argentine league and the preliminary phase of the Copa Libertadores, meaning they haven’t played in any continental tournament in 2025. The team’s president, Juan Román Riquelme, is facing heavy criticism for his management. They recently hired coach Miguel Ángel Russo and Marco Pellegrino, their new signing, who arrived injured. Their squad includes Agustín Marchesín, who played for Porto, and Marcos Rojo, formerly of Sporting. They also have two players with long European careers: Edinson Cavani and Ander Herrera.

Benfica had a heartbreaking end to the season. They drew their last two matches, one of them in the derby against Sporting, and saw their rivals overtake them in the final Round to win the title by two points. They just lost Arthur Cabral, who transferred to Botafogo, while Ángel Di María will play his last tournament with the club before returning to Rosario Central. They managed to hold onto Álvaro Carreras, who will join Real Madrid after the tournament.

Boca Juniors vs. Benfica Betting Pick: Benfica

Club World Cup Matchday 1: Real Madrid vs. Al-Hilal

Real Madrid needs no introduction in this tournament. It is the most successful club in history and comes with the mission of winning a title after going trophyless last season, despite reinforcing with Kylian Mbappé. They lost Carlo Ancelotti but brought in a familiar face in Xabi Alonso after his successful spell at Bayer Leverkusen. Among the new faces debuting in this tournament are defenders Dean Huijsen and Trent Alexander-Arnold, brought in to reinforce the team’s Achilles heel this season, partly due to injuries.

Al-Hilal made headlines by signing Neymar, the first major signing in Arab football, though the Brazilian spent most of his time injured. The club didn’t stop there and continued bringing in stars like Aleksandar Mitrovic, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Rúben Neves, Malcom, Marcos Leonardo, João Cancelo, Kalidou Koulibaly, Renan Lodi, and Bono. Without a doubt, this could easily be a European club in any of the top leagues. They just hired Simone Inzaghi as head coach after Jorge Jesus was dismissed following elimination from the AFC Champions League. They finished second in the Saudi League behind Karim Benzema’s Al-Ittihad.

Real Madrid vs. Al-Hilal Betting Pick: Real Madrid