2025 FIFA Club World Cup Betting Tips
In the absence of a major international tournament this summer, the revamped FIFA Club World Cup is the main event before the new season gets underway as 32 teams meet in the USA for the month-long event.
In previous years this competition has been held in December with just seven teams but the 2025 edition follows a similar blueprint to an international World Cup, with the 32 teams split into eight groups of four and the top two from each group progressing to the knockout stages.
Each federation is represented and UEFA have the most spots with 12, and 10 of those teams make up the top 10 favourites.
Tip 1 - Real Madrid to win the FIFA Club World Cup outright @ 4/1
Real Madrid are the favourites to go all the way and take the title and there are a few reasons why the Spanish giants look worthy of their position as market leaders.
Los Blancos, the record five-time winners of this competition, have had a disappointing season by their own standards and this tournament represents a last chance to claim some major silverware. Real did claim the UEFA Super Cup, but they finished second in La Liga, were eliminated in the quarter-finals of the Champions League and finished as the runners-up in both the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup.
The FIFA Club World Cup marks a changing of the guard for Real, as Xabi Alonso has replaced Carlo Ancelotti as manager and the squad will be eager to impress their new boss. Los Blancos have been handed a favourable draw in the group stage and, if they avoid Manchester City in the last 16, their run through to the last four could be fairly straightforward.
Paris Saint-Germain are next in the betting after their Champions League triumph but it remains to be seen how much they have left to give after landing that title.
Real are clearly taking this tournament seriously after paying a fee to have summer recruit Trent Alexander-Arnold available for the FIFA Club World Cup, but motivation may be an issue for some of their main European rivals - such as Champions League runners-up Inter Milan and defending champions Manchester City - so the Madrid outfit may prove to be the team to beat in the USA.
Tip 2 - Kylian Mbappe to score most goals in the competition @ 9/2
Irrespective of whether or not Real are able to go all the way at the FIFA Club World Cup, star forward Kylian Mbappe looks the standout pick to be the competition’s top scorer.
The strikers who will challenge for this individual honour will need to hit the ground running in the group stages and Mbappe will come up against three teams he should be able to grab a few goals against.
Los Blancos have been drawn with Austria’s Red Bull Salzburg, Mexican outfit Pachuca and Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal. With no disrespect intended, the Spanish giants are clearly a few levels above their Group H rivals and it would be no surprise to see them win all three group stage games by healthy margins.
Mbappe comes into the competition in red-hot form with 12 goals in his last eight games for club and country. The Frenchman was the top scorer in La Liga with 31 goals in 34 games, and he can follow that up by being the leading marksman at the FIFA Club World Cup.
Tip 3 - Cole Palmer to give most assists in the competition @ 11/1
Like the top scorer, the player who leads the assists charts will probably do most of the heavy lifting in the group stages.
Michael Olise is the favourite for most assists after weighing in with an impressive 15 in the Bundesliga but Bayern Munich have a tough draw in the group stages and that could limit their attacking output.
Chelsea have a kinder draw, with Flamengo their chief rivals in a Group D that also includes LAFC and Espérance de Tunis. England international Cole Palmer was their Premier League assist leader with eight and he also had three in eight Conference League games.
The Stamford Bridge side may not progress much further than the group stages but they should dominate the three sides they have been drawn against and that gives Palmer a decent chance of being the tournament’s assist leader.
Odds correct at time of publication but subject to fluctuation