The draw for the expanded Fifa Club World Cup took place in Miami on Thursday – 24 hours after a $1 billion (£787 million) broadcast deal was announced with DAZN.

An annual seven-team format is being replaced by a 32-team contest every four years. The two British clubs involved – Chelsea and Manchester City – ought to be confident of progressing to the knockout states.

When and where is the Club World Cup?

The 2025 tournament will run from June 15 to July 13 next year and is being held in the US. Twelve venues will be used across the country, with the final to be staged at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

The other venues are Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta), TQL Stadium (Cincinnati), Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte), Rose Bowl Stadium (Pasadena), Hard Rock Stadium (Miami), GEODIS Park (Nashville), Camping World Stadium (Orlando), Inter&Co Stadium (Orlando), Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia), Lumen Field (Seattle) and Audi Field (Washington).

The Club World Cup draw in full

The draw was made on December 5, in a ceremony held in Miami. Manchester City, the defending champions, will play against Morocco’s Wydad, Al Ain of the UAE and Juventus from Serie A. Chelsea have got Club Leon from Mexico, Esperance Sportive de Tunisie and Flamengo of Brazil.

Group A: Palmeiras, FC Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami

Group B: Paris St-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle Sounders

Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica

Group D: Flamengo, Esperance Sportive de Tunisie, Chelsea, Club Leon

Group E: River Plate, Urawa Red Diamonds, Monterrey, Inter Milan

Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns

Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus

Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg

What is the format?

The competition shares the same format as the men’s and women’s World Cup competitions. The 32 teams are divided into eight groups of four, who will play each other in a single round-robin format. The top two teams from each group will then go through to the knockout stages. The final will take place on July 13, but unlike the World Cups, there will be no third-place play-off.

Why are Chelsea in the Club World Cup?

The tournament features clubs from each of the six international confederations and there were 12 places available for European clubs, decided by Champions League performances over the past four seasons. As a result, recent European Cup winners Chelsea (2021) and Manchester City (2023) qualified. Only two clubs per country can qualify, meaning 2022 Champions League finalists Liverpool were not included. One spot in the tournament was reserved for a team from the host nation, which enabled Fifa to shoehorn Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami into the draw.

Is the tournament controversial?

In short, yes.

The involvement of 32 teams has added even more games and, in the process, cut rest time for the world’s top players. This has attracted criticism and led to the threat of strike action by some players. In June, Fifpro, the global footballers’ union, took legal action against Fifa over player burnout at the expanded Club World Cup. There is also the issue that a lot of players’ contracts will run out in the middle of the tournament.

How can I watch the tournament?

In December, Fifa and DAZN announced a $1 billion free-to-air broadcast rights deal for the new competition.

“The agreement to hold the exclusive global broadcast rights to the Fifa Club World Cup 2025 marks the start of a broader partnership between DAZN and Fifa. This includes integrating Fifa+, Fifa’s library of iconic football moments and full-match replays, as well as live fixtures, into the DAZN platform.”

What else does DAZN show?

There has been much talk behind the scenes that Saudi Arabia is propping up DAZN with investment for its rights deal with Fifa. Connections with the kingdom have steadily grown in recent years. The streaming service became the first major rights partner for the Saudi Pro League and it has also established itself as one of the biggest powerbrokers in boxing, having initially agreed a deal with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Sport in 2018.