The expanded 2025 FIFA Club World Cup has kicked off in the United States with 32 of the world’s top clubs—but notably absent are Premier League powerhouses Manchester United, Arsenal, and Liverpool.
The reason? FIFA’s strict two-club-per-nation limit.
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Despite consistent European presence, only Chelsea and Manchester City earned England’s two available spots, thanks to their Champions League triumphs in 2021 and 2023. That rule effectively blocked out any other English teams, regardless of UEFA coefficient rankings.
Liverpool, despite reaching the 2022 Champions League final, missed the cut by not winning the title. Meanwhile, Manchester United and Arsenal failed to make deep runs in Europe over the last four seasons, leaving them out of contention.
Twelve European clubs qualified based on Champions League results from 2020 to 2024. But FIFA’s emphasis on title wins and its country cap meant other major clubs—like Barcelona, AC Milan, and RB Leipzig—were also left on the sidelines.
While heavyweights like Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, PSG, and Juventus headline the tournament, and Inter Miami controversially participate as U.S. representatives despite not winning MLS, United, Arsenal, and Liverpool are left watching from afar—casualties of FIFA’s rigid selection rules.
