
The upcoming round of the Club World Cup will reduce the participant count from 32 to 16, with the group stage finals taking place in the U.S. this week, leading to the knockout matches starting Saturday.
For the round of 16, teams from Europe and South America are expected to dominate, although the tournament has already produced some surprises. South American clubs have only one loss in the tournament thus far, with a notable mention being Flamengo, who have secured their place in the knockout stage early after victories over Esperance de Tunis and Chelsea.
Meanwhile, Inter Miami is positioned well to become the only non-South American or European team to advance after their surprising win over Porto.
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Group Scenarios as the Club World Cup Nears Closure
Group A Scenarios
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Palmeiras can advance with:
- Win or draw against Inter Miami
- Loss to Inter Miami AND Al Ahly winning against Porto
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Inter Miami advances with:
- Win or draw against Palmeiras
- Loss to Palmeiras AND Porto winning against Al Ahly
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Porto advances with:
- Win against Al Ahly while Palmeiras loses to Inter Miami
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Al Ahly advances with:
- Win against Porto while Inter Miami loses to Palmeiras
Group B Scenarios
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Botafogo can advance with:
- Win or draw against Atletico Madrid
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Paris Saint-Germain advances with:
- Win against Seattle Sounders
- Draw against Seattle Sounders AND Botafogo win or draw
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Seattle Sounders can advance with:
- Win against PSG by a margin of three or more goals AND Atletico Madrid losing to Botafogo.
Team Scenarios Continue for Other Groups
The scenarios for Groups C through H outline the paths for additional teams, including Bayern Munich and Chelsea among others, as they vie for progression to the knockout stage.
Note: Each team’s advancement is contingent on various conditions related to their performance and that of their rivals.