FIFA Club World Cup: Participants’ market values vary from €5 million to €1.26 billion

The Fifa Club World Cup is about to kick off on Tuesday. The tournament will be held in Saudi Arabia with the local team Al-Ettihad invited to join via a ‘wild card’ to promote the hosting nation. The 2023 edition will be the last with the tournament’s current format, as from 2025 it will expand to 32 teams and will be played every 4 years.
Lately the European teams have been facing no challenge at all. The sole side representing UEFA has won 16 of the previous 17 editions of the Club World Cup with the current format, with the only exception being in 2012 when Chelsea lost 1-0 to Corinthians. SuperBettingSites‘ latest report looks into the market values of all seven participants and pinpoints the main reason for the upcoming format change – namely to raise competitiveness. One of our report’s key revelations is that Manchester City’s market value alone exceeds four times the combined worth of the other six participating teams.

Key Takeaways:

• Manchester City’s market value of €1.26 billion far surpasses the combined value of all remaining teams
• Five of the seven teams are valued below €100 million
• Despite being the second most expensive squad, Al-Ittihad is 11 times cheaper than Manchester City
• The difference between the most and least expensive squads is over 236 times
• The teams’ shares of the total market value vary from Auckland’s 0.3% to Manchester City’s 81.5%

The Asian Football Confederation will be the only one with 2 representatives in the Club World Cup 2023. Urawa Red Diamonds won the Asian Champions League, qualifying by right, while Al-Ettihad was invited to represent the hosting nation Saudi Arabia.

Teams worth more than €100 million:

Manchester City: The team will enter the competition from the semi-final stage. Pep Guardiola’s side will participate in its 1st ever Club World Cup. They qualified for the tournament after defeating Inter 1:0 in UEFA’s Champions League final. City’s aim is to lift the trophy, which is the only missing piece in the club’s trophy cabinet.

Player with the highest market value: Erling Haaland €180 million

Al-Ittihad: Invited to represent the host nation, Al-Ittihad are Saudi Arabia’s reigning champions. The team has seen great improvement over the past 12 months, acquiring the services of Karim Benzema, N’golo Kante and Fabinho among others. Al-Ittihad were invited to participate in the tournament to represent the hosting nation Saudi Arabia which will host the 2032 FIFA World Cup.

Player with the highest market value: Fabinho €38 million

Teams worth less than €100 million:

Fluminense: Fresh of winning Copa Libertadores, Fluminense will enter the Club World Cup as the 3rd most expensive team. The Brazilians prevailed on penalties over Boca Juniors in early November, after the regular 90 minutes and extra-time finished in a 1:1 draw. The Brazilian team features the likes of experienced players in Europe like Marcelo and Felipe Melo.

Player with the highest market value: Andre €15 million

Club Leon: The Mexican team reserved its place in the Club World Cup after defeating Los Angeles FC in the Concacaf Champions League final in June. Club Leon will come up against Urawa Red Diamonds in its first match on Saudi soil. If they win, then the team will face Manchester City.

Player with the highest market value: Adonis Frias €5 million

Al Ahly: Al Ahly Cairo will appear in its 9th Club World Cup tournament. They earned that right after winning the CAF Champions League title, defeating Wydad Casablanca 3:2 on aggregate in the two-legged final in June. Al Ahly’s first game will be in the 2nd round of the tournament, against the winner of the clash between Al-Ittihad and Auckland City.

Player with the highest market value: Aliou Dieng €4.5 million

Urawa Red Diamonds: The Japanese side will return to Saudi Arabia again after defeating the country’s most popular team Al-Hilal in the AFC Champions League final in early May. It will be the 3rd participation in the team’s history at the FIFA Club World Cup. Urawa Red Diamonds’ first match is on 15th December against Club Leon.

Player with the highest market value: Alexander Scholz €2.2 million

Auckland City: The New Zealanders will enter the tournament as the most seasoned team at the FIFA Club World Cup. Auckland City have already represented the Oceania region in the global competition 10 times and are preparing for their 11th appearance. They earned that after defeating Suva 4:2 after extra-time in the OFC Champions League final in May.

Player with the highest market value: Cameron Howieson €0.425 million

Participating teams market values