The Fifa Club World Cup breaks new ground when it takes place for the first time in Saudi Arabia on December 12. In another first, European champions Manchester City debut at the tournament, and will feature alongside the likes of hosts Al Ittihad, Egypt’s Al Ahly and South American champions Fluminense. The Brazilian side were confirmed last month as the final team to seal their spot in Jeddah.
What is it?
The Fifa Club World Cup is a seven-team tournament bringing together the champions of the six continental confederations and the host nation’s most recent league winners. The 2023 edition will see history made with the competition debuting in the kingdom – with host city Jeddah providing the setting. The Club World Cup has been held in the Gulf seven times previously: five times in the UAE and twice in Qatar.
However, this year's tournament represents the last time it will be played in its current format; the next edition, in 2025, will be expanded to 32 teams. The United States will host.
When is it?
The 2023 tournament runs December 12-22, with both the final and the third-place play-off taking place on December 22.
Where is it?
Matches will be played at King Abdullah Sports City and Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium.
Who is playing? *Club World Cup participation in brackets
Al Ittihad (Saudi Arabia) – 2022/23 Saudi Pro League winners (2nd)
Manchester City (England) – 2022/23 Uefa Champions League winners (1st)
Fluminense (Brazil) – 2023 Copa Libertadores winners (1st)
Al Ahly (Egypt) – 2022/23 Caf Champions League winners (9th)
Urawa Red Diamonds (Japan) – 2022 Asian Champions League winners (3rd)
Club Leon (Mexico) – 2023 Concacaf Champions League winners (1st)
Auckland City (New Zealand) – 2023 OFC Champions League nominees (11th)
Fixtures (all times Saudi local time)
First round:
December 12 – Al Ittihad v Auckland City, King Abdullah Sports City, 9pm
Second round:
December 15 – Club Leon v Urawa Reds, Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium, 5:30pm
December 16 – Al Ahly v Winners Match 1, King Abdullah Sports City, 9pm
Semi-finals:
December 18 – Fluminense v Winners Match 2, King Abdullah Sports City, 9pm
December 19 – Manchester City v Winners Match 3, King Abdullah Sports City, 9pm
Third place play-off:
December 22 – Losers Match 4 v Losers Match 5, Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium, 5:30pm
Final:
December 22 – Winners Match 4 v Winners Match 5, King Abdullah Sports City, 9pm
Past winners
Real Madrid hold the record for most Club World Cup titles, with five. The Spanish giants won the third and fourth of those crowns in Abu Dhabi, in 2017 and 2018. Long-time rivals Barcelona, meanwhile, sit second in the overall standings, with three titles. Like Madrid, they have tasted success in Abu Dhabi before, in 2009.
Corinthians and Bayern Munich are the only other clubs with multiple wins (2), while Liverpool, AC Milan, Manchester United, Inter Milan and Chelsea are among the teams who have captured the trophy once. The latter two also achieved the feat in the UAE capital, in 2010 and 2021, respectively.
Tickets
Tickets for the 2023 Club World Cup start at SAR 40, and can be found at https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/tournaments/mens/fifa-club-world-cup/saudi-arabia-2023/tickets
RESULTS
Dubai Kahayla Classic – Group 1 (PA) $750,000 (Dirt) 2,000m
Winner: Deryan, Ioritz Mendizabal (jockey), Didier Guillemin (trainer).
Godolphin Mile – Group 2 (TB) $750,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Secret Ambition, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar
Dubai Gold Cup – Group 2 (TB) $750,000 (Turf) 3,200m
Winner: Subjectivist, Joe Fanning, Mark Johnston
Al Quoz Sprint – Group 1 (TB) $1million (T) 1,200m
Winner: Extravagant Kid, Ryan Moore, Brendan Walsh
UAE Derby – Group 2 (TB) $750,000 (D) 1,900m
Winner: Rebel’s Romance, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
Dubai Golden Shaheen – Group 1 (TB) $1.5million (D) 1,200m
Winner: Zenden, Antonio Fresu, Carlos David
Dubai Turf – Group 1 (TB) $4million (T) 1,800m
Winner: Lord North, Frankie Dettori, John Gosden
Dubai Sheema Classic – Group 1 (TB) $5million (T) 2,410m
Winner: Mishriff, John Egan, John Gosden
World Cup warm-up fixtures
Friday, May 24:
- Pakistan v Afghanistan (Bristol)
- Sri Lanka v South Africa (Cardiff)
Saturday, May 25
- England v Australia (Southampton)
- India v New Zealand (The Oval, London)
Sunday, May 26
- South Africa v West Indies (Bristol)
- Pakistan v Bangladesh (Cardiff)
Monday, May 27
- Australia v Sri Lanka (Southampton)
- England v Afghanistan (The Oval, London)
Tuesday, May 28
- West Indies v New Zealand (Bristol)
- Bangladesh v India (Cardiff)
2019 ASIA CUP POTS
Pot 1
UAE, Iran, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia
Pot 2
China, Syria, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Qatar, Thailand
Pot 3
Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Palestine, Oman, India, Vietnam
Pot 4
North Korea, Philippines, Bahrain, Jordan, Yemen, Turkmenistan
What drives subscription retailing?
Once the domain of newspaper home deliveries, subscription model retailing has combined with e-commerce to permeate myriad products and services.
The concept has grown tremendously around the world and is forecast to thrive further, according to UnivDatos Market Insights’ report on recent and predicted trends in the sector.
The global subscription e-commerce market was valued at $13.2 billion (Dh48.5bn) in 2018. It is forecast to touch $478.2bn in 2025, and include the entertainment, fitness, food, cosmetics, baby care and fashion sectors.
The report says subscription-based services currently constitute “a small trend within e-commerce”. The US hosts almost 70 per cent of recurring plan firms, including leaders Dollar Shave Club, Hello Fresh and Netflix. Walmart and Sephora are among longer established retailers entering the space.
UnivDatos cites younger and affluent urbanites as prime subscription targets, with women currently the largest share of end-users.
That’s expected to remain unchanged until 2025, when women will represent a $246.6bn market share, owing to increasing numbers of start-ups targeting women.
Personal care and beauty occupy the largest chunk of the worldwide subscription e-commerce market, with changing lifestyles, work schedules, customisation and convenience among the chief future drivers.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
How to help
Donate towards food and a flight by transferring money to this registered charity's account.
Account name: Dar Al Ber Society
Account Number: 11 530 734
IBAN: AE 9805 000 000 000 11 530 734
Bank Name: Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank
To ensure that your contribution reaches these people, please send the copy of deposit/transfer receipt to: juhi.khan@daralber.ae
