Intercontinental Cup: What is it and could Al Ain play Real Madrid again?

Asian champions face Oceanic champions Auckland City in first match on Sunday with final on December 18

Al Ain celebrate with the AFC Champions League trophy after their 6-3 aggregate victory over Yokohama F Marinos. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Al Ain will begin their quest for a new title when they face Auckland City at the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium on Sunday.

It is the first fixture in a competition that is a little bit like an amalgamation of a couple of previous tournaments.

What is the Intercontinental Cup?

The 2024 Fifa Intercontinental Cup is technically the first iteration of a new global competition for clubs, although it is really just a diluted version of ones that have gone before.

It differs from the event that used to take place annually with a similar name. The Intercontinental Cup was the fixture played between the champions of Europe and South America between 1960 and 2004. That was the event designed to find the club who could be regarded as the best in the world.

Although it was played between sides from two continents, the “intercontinental” moniker was rather a misnomer, given that the rest of the world was excluded. Really, it was a bilateral event.

By 2000, Fifa had created the Club World Cup, involving sides from the other continents, too, and within four years the old Intercontinental Cup had fizzled out.

The new competition actually seems more like the previous Club World Cup, even if isn’t that precisely, either.

How does it differ from the Club World Cup?

The Club World Cup is the name now given to yet another new Fifa competition for clubs, which is scheduled to take place next summer in the United States.

That will be a huge behemoth of an event, involving 32 teams from six confederations around the world, and set to be staged every four years. It will involve massive clubs like Flamengo, River Plate, Boca Juniors, Real Madrid, Manchester City and Juventus.

Although all that assumes it will go ahead at all. Rodri, Manchester City’s Spanish midfielder, this week floated the idea of a players’ strike over the volume of matches they are now asked to play.

And players’ unions and domestic leagues have brought legal cases against Fifa, claiming a lack of consultation on the scheduling of the new tournament.

Why are Al Ain in it?

Al Ain qualified after their glorious march to the AFC Champions League title last season, when they dispatched Japan’s Yokohama F Marinos 6-3 on aggregate over two legs in the final.

It meant Hernan Crespo’s side are the Asian entrant into the Intercontinental Cup, and will have a place at the Club World Cup in 2025, too.

Al Ain players and coaching staff celebrate after beating Yokohama F Marinos to win the AFC Champions League on May 25, 2024. Al Ain won 5-1 at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium and 6-3 on aggregate. All images: Chris Whiteoak / The National

Two-goal hero and man of the match Soufiane Rahimi celebrates victory.

Al Ain manager Hernan Crespo celebrates with the trophy.

Al Ain celebrate their victory at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium.

Al Ain celebrate their victory at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium.

Al Ain celebrate their victory at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium.

Al Ain manager Hernan Crespo celebrates the win.

Al Ain players celebrate after the match.

Soufiane Rahimi after scoring his second of the match and Al Ain's third.

Kaku scores Al Ain's second goal from the spot.

Al Ain manager Hernan Crespo.

Soufiane Rahimi celebrates after scoring for Al Ain to make it 1-0 on the night.

Yokohama' goalkeeper William Popp after being sent off.

Yokohama's Australian manager Harry Kewell.

Al Ain's Soufiane Rahimi after scoring his second of the match.

Al Ain's Kaku celebrates after scoring.

Yokohama's Yan Matheus celebrates after scoring.

Soufiane Rahimi scores for Al Ain.

Yokohama's Yan Matheus after scoring.

Al Ain fans before the game at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium.

Yokohama fans before the game at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium.

Al Ain fans head to the stadium.

Al Ain fans ahead of the AFC Champions League final second leg.

Yokohama fans at the Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in Al Ain. Chris Whiteoak / The National

An Al Ain fan outside Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium.

Yokohama fans in the stadium before the game.

Who might they play?

The tournament involves the six teams that won the continental championships in each Fifa confederation last season.

The opening round fixture pits Asian champions Al Ain against Auckland City, the New Zealand side who won the Oceanian club championship.

The winners of Sunday’s game will travel to Cairo to play Africa’s top side, Al Ahly, in what is essentially a quarter-final tie on October 29.

A couple of weeks later, Mexican side Pachuca will play South America’s representative, with the winner of that game playing the winners of the match in Cairo in the semi-final play-off.

What about Real Madrid?

As champions of Europe, Real Madrid have the cushiest gig of any side in the Intercontinental Cup. All they have to do is pitch up for the final on December 18 and play the winners of the semi-final play-off.

The last two rounds of the Intercontinental Cup will be played at a yet-to-be-named neutral venue from December 14 to December 18.

Al Ain’s path to the final is a long one, but they have done it before. In 2018, in a Club World Cup that followed broadly the same format – albeit with all the games played in one country, namely the UAE – they made it all the way to the final.

By coincidence, when they got there they faced the same side who lie in wait this time around.

Back then, Al Ain finally ran out of gas at the last. Having beaten Wellington, Esperance de Tunis and the mighty River Plate to get to the final at Zayed Sports City in Abu Dhabi, they succumbed 4-1 to star-studded Madrid in the final.