International Federation of Association Football announces new format for Intercontinental Cup

Zurich: The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) announced the Intercontinental Cup 2024, an exciting new format that will feature stand-alone intercontinental competitions and give more fans the chance to watch their favourite clubs in action on home soil.

The revamped tournament will bring together champions from the six confederations for five thrilling matches between September and December 2024, with the final set to take place in Qatar.

The tournament, which was announced in December 2023, replaces the annual Club World Cup which will now be played every four years with 32 teams from 2025.

For the first time in the tournament’s history, clubs from Africa, Asia, and Oceania will have the chance to host FIFA matches, with the higher-ranked of the two competing teams staging the opening two matches in their home countries.

The action kicks off on Sunday with the FIFA African-Asian-Pacific Cup Play-Off, where Al Ain, winners of the AFC Champions League 2023-2024, will face Auckland City, the 2024 OFC Champions League winners. This match will take place in Al Ain, UAE.

The winner of this play-off will then travel to Cairo, Egypt, to face CAF Champions League winners Al Ahly on October 29, 2024, in the FIFA African-Asian-Pacific Cup final.

The FIFA Derby of the Americas, an eagerly anticipated clash between the CONMEBOL Libertadores 2024 champions and the Concacaf Champions Cup 2024 winners, Pachuca, will take place in Doha, Qatar, on December 11, 2024.

Winners of the FIFA African-Asian-Pacific Cup and the FIFA Derby of the Americas will meet in the FIFA Challenger Cup on December 14, 2024, in Doha. The winner of this match will earn a spot in the ultimate showdown.

On December 18, the FIFA Challenger Cup champions will face UEFA Champions League winners Real Madrid in the grand finale, the FIFA Intercontinental Cup, also in Doha.

This decisive match will coincide with Qatar’s National Day and marks the two-year anniversary of the unforgettable FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 final. IANS

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