FIFA Club World Cup 2019: Teams, Fixtures announced

Published at :September 16, 2019 at 7:10 PM

Modified at :September 16, 2019 at 7:10 PM

It will be the 16th edition of the annual FIFA event.

The FIFA Club World Cup 2019 is due to begin on the 11th of December with the final being held in Qatar. The draw for the prestigious competition was conducted in Zurich as former England striker, Michael Owen drew the seven contenders.

Asia will meet Africa in the quarter-finals, with Tunisian club, Esperance Sportive de Tunis set to take on the winner of the AFC Champions League. The winner of that match will then go on to face the winner of the CONMEBOL Libertadores in the semi-finals.

In the opening fixture, hosts Al-Saad will face off against Hienghene Sport. The winner of that match will go on to face Monterrey from Mexico in the quarters.

The victors will proceed to face European champions, Liverpool in the semi-finals of the competition, in a match that is sure to be the toughest test of the lot.

It looks almost a certainty that the competition will see a first-time winner in 2019, with Liverpool being the only former finalists of the competition from their run in 2005, where they finished as runners up. The last new winners were Bayern Munich when they lifted the trophy following their Champions League victory in 2013.

“I’m really excited for the competition,” Owen said, following the draw. “There’s not many players that get their hands on this trophy in their careers and of course every player wants to win a whole array of trophies. This is one of the difficult ones to win and I’m sure everyone will be going full at it to win.”

This edition of the competition will be the first time in a decade that we will see back to back OFC Debutants kick off in the tournament, with New Zeland side Hiengene Sport representing Oceania.

The entire group of contenders is yet to be revealed. The likes of Boca Juniors, Kashima Antlers and River plate could yet join the party.

The competition remains a golden opportunity for Jurgen Klopp to add to his trophy cabinet at Liverpool but it remains to be seen if the Champions League winners can be held back from claiming the trophy.

The complete list of fixtures is given below.

Opening Fixture:

Al Saad SC vs Hienghene Sport

Quarter-Finals:

Monterrey vs Winner of Match 1
AFC Champions League winner vs Esperance Sportive de Tunis

Semi-Finals:

Winner of Match 2 vs Liverpool
CONMEBOL Libertadores winners vs Winner of Match 3.