Local club Al-Ittihad, the Saudi champions who have recently signed Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kante, will be joined by the six continental club champions for the December tournament. It will be the last edition in that format before the 32-team version launches in 2025 in the United States.
FIFA have revealed that the 2023 tournament will be played in the King Abdullah Sport City Stadium and Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium. They hold about 62,000 and 27,000 spectators, respectively.
Benzema will be trying to retain the trophy he helped Real Madrid win in February, beating Saudi club Al-Hilal in the final hosted by Morocco.
Al-Ittihad will open the next tournament in a first-round game against Auckland City, the Oceania champion. The winner will advance to the second round, joining Leon of Mexico, Al-Ahly of Egypt and Urawa Red Diamonds of Japan.
Man City and the South American champions will enter at the semi-final stage. The Copa Libertadores final is played on November 4.
Each continental champion from 2021 through 2024, except in Oceania, have also qualified directly for the expanded tournament in 2025.
FIFA picked Saudi Arabia in February to host the 2023 Club World Club, giving the kingdom its latest international event in an aggressive push to make a bigger impact in world sports.
Saudi Arabia will also host the 2027 Asian Cup and are expected to be a strong contender bidding to host the men’s 2034 World Cup.
