A world first for the new millennium

FIFA Club World Championships Final. Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. 14th January, 2000. Corinthians 0 v Vasco Da Gama 0. (Corinthians win on penalties). The Corinthians team celebrate their win in the Final with the trophy.

The first ever FIFA Club World Cup was held in 2000
16 tournaments so far with 10 different winners
Club World Cup 2020 to take place from 1 to 11 February

In around three weeks’ time, the FIFA Club World Cup 2020™ will be held in Qatar. We already know six of the seven participants, and you can see the full list of matches here. The draw to decide the match pairings will take place on 19 January 2021 at 16:00 CET in Zurich, with everyone keen to find out who will succeed Liverpool and lift the most prestigious trophy in world club football.

Around 13 months ago, the Reds finished off 2019 with a win over Rio de Janeiro giants Flamengo to claim the Club World Cup, but they will not be able to defend their title. Last summer, Bayern Munich won the UEFA Champions League and now have the chance to add a second Club World Cup to their trophy cabinet after their 2013 success.

Since the tournament was first created in 2000, European clubs have triumphed on 12 occasions, with four South American winners. Which confederation is going to come out on top in Qatar as the tournament is held for the final time in its current format?

New beginnings in 2000

The battle for the world club crown first started in 2000. The FIFA Club World Cup in Brazil was the first international football tournament of the new millennium. It was a courageous move to globalise club football, and a perfect opportunity to enjoy a unique display of so many highly-talented footballers all at once. Eight clubs from the four corners of the globe headed to the warm climes of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, to the country that many consider to be the beating heart of football.

Among the big names taking part were record European Cup/Champions League winners Real Madrid, as well as Manchester United, who had just bagged the Champions League trophy. The Premier League side, who had won the treble in the 1998/99 season, even pulled out of defending their FA Cup title to face off against the best that the world had to offer in the land of samba and Carnival.

Inaugural Club World Cup winners

In the end, it was the two Brazilian teams – Vasco da Gama from Rio and Corinthians from Sao Paulo – who met in the final. And after a tactical battle that remained goalless for 120 minutes, it was Corinthians who emerged victorious 4-3 on penalties. Prior to the final, they had drawn with Real Madrid and defeated Al Nassr of Saudi Arabia and Raja Casablanca of Morocco in the first round. With their star-studded line-up including Vampeta, Freddy Rincon, Edu, Dida and the incomparable Edilson – they then edged the final to record a well-deserved win in front of 73,000 fans at the legendary Maracana Stadium in Rio.

Corinthians players celebrate their win with the champions board after the FIFA Club World Cup Final

Europe begins to take over

There was then a four-year wait before the next tournament was held, in Japan in 2005. And as was the case in the opening edition of the tournament, it was a team from Brazil who took the title, this time Sao Paulo. Twelve months later, Internacional de Porto Alegre completed the Brazilian treble, but apart from another win for Corinthians in 2012, every other name on the trophy has been from Europe.

The record-holders are Real Madrid with four wins, ahead of their Spanish rivals Barcelona on three and Corinthians with two. Seven other teams have also won the title, including Bayern Munich, who are in action again this year. And as for the top scorer in tournament history, that is none other than Cristiano Ronaldo.

Previous winners

Results by confederation

Last year’s final

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