Two teams have secured their spots in the semi-finals of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup following dramatic quarter-final victories in the United States on Friday and early Saturday.
Before kickoff, a moment of silence was observed in honour of Liverpool and Portugal forward Diogo Jota and his younger brother, Andre Silva, who tragically died in a car accident in Spain on Thursday.
In the first quarter-final match, Brazilian side Fluminense edged Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal 2-1. Matheus Martinelli opened the scoring for Fluminense with a brilliant left-footed strike in the 40th minute. Al Hilal hit back shortly after the break through Brazilian forward Marcos Leonardo, but substitute Hercules netted the decisive goal in the 70th minute, sending the majority of the 43,091 fans into celebration.
In Friday’s other quarter-final, Chelsea booked their place in the semi-finals with a narrow 2-1 win over Palmeiras of Brazil. The Premier League club took the lead through Cole Palmer before Palmeiras’ teenage sensation Estevao Willian who is set to join Chelsea after the tournament produced a stunning equaliser in the 53rd minute. However, an unfortunate late own goal by Palmeiras goalkeeper Weverton handed Chelsea the win.
The Blues will now face Fluminense in the first semi-final on Tuesday, July 8 marking their third consecutive match against Brazilian opposition in the tournament.
Later today, the remaining quarter-final ties will see Paris Saint-Germain take on Bayern Munich, while Borussia Dortmund face Real Madrid.
Chelsea’s win also mirrored their triumph over Palmeiras in the 2022 Club World Cup final, under the previous tournament format.
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