2023 Club World Cup to be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

By Selcuk Bugra Gokalp

ANKARA (AA) - The Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) and the International Association Football Federation (FIFA) both confirmed Monday that the 2023 FIFA Club World Cup will take place in the Saudi city of Jeddah.

The decision came following the visit by a FIFA delegation to Jeddah to assess ongoing preparations for the tournament, which is scheduled to be held from Dec. 12-22.

"We are delighted that Jeddah, with its state-of-the-art facilities and reputation for hosting major international sports events, has been selected as host city for the FIFA Club World Cup," said Yasser Al Misehal, President of the Saudi Arabian Football Federation.

"Sport is a key driver of Saudi Arabia’s ongoing transformation under Vision 2030, which has established the Kingdom as one of the fastest growing and most exciting countries in world sport," he added.

This will mark the maiden FIFA Club World Cup competition held in Saudi Arabia.

Founded in 2000, the Club World Cup was last won by Real Madrid in 2022.

The straight knock-out competition is held among the winners of the year's AFC Champions League (Asia), CAF Champions League (Africa), CONCACAF Champions Cup (North, Central America and Caribbean), CONMEBOL Libertadores (South America), OFC Champions League (Oceania) and UEFA Champions League (Europe), along with the host nation's national champions.