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Chelsea reign as World Champions
There wasn't many people outside of London who believed that Chelsea could win the FIFA Club World Cup with the likes of Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, and newly crowned European champions Paris Saint-Germain in the tournament. They definitely were not the favorites but managed to reach the final at MetLife Stadium in New York. There was concerns about this tournament ranging from the weather to attendance due to match times but ultimately it was a financial success for FIFA.
The global tournament in its inaugural debut in this format came to a close on Sunday, July 13 at MetLife Stadium with a halftime performance featuring J Balvin, Coldplay, and Doja Cat. The finalists were Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain with the European champions entering as the favorites after dismantling many teams in the tournament including 4-0 over Inter Miami CF and 4-0 against Real Madrid. The final was kicked off by legendary boxing ring announcer Michael Buffer ringing out a "let's get ready to rumble" as the whistle blew.
From the very get go it was surprising with the amount of pressure that Chelsea was putting on PSG with the dam finally breaking in the 22nd minute. Cole Palmer would perfectly place a ball past Donnarumma to make it 1-0 for the English side. There was no response from the European champions with Palmer finding the back of the net again in the 30th minute making it 2-0. One can only wonder if England would've won the Euros if they had inserted him earlier against Spain.
The real dagger arrived in the 43rd minute right before halftime with João Pedro making it a third goal for Chelsea. At halftime with a 3-0 match it was all set and done unless PSG came up with something miraculous. The second half was dirty with PSG's João Neves picking up a red card for pulling Cucurella's hair amongst other dirty challenges. At the final whistle things were still heated even with PSG manager Luis Enrique getting in the face of a Chelsea squad member and seen slapping him.
This did not put a damper on the Chelsea celebrations as they were proclaimed champions of the world having their names etched on the new trophy designed by Tiffany and Co. The trophy was presented to captain Reece James by U.S. President Donald Trump and FIFA President Gianni Infantino. The next edition of the FIFA Club World Cup will be in 2029 with the host nation yet to be determined. The FIFA World Cup will commence next June of 2026 in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Written by: Daniel Torres
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