The Athletic has live coverage of Inter Miami vs Porto and Sounders vs Athletico at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.

Gianni Infantino’s grand experiment has now fully gotten underway, with all 32 teams having played their opening matches in this newfangled Club World Cup. There’s still much we don’t know about the viability of the tournament in this format, as well as the impact it will have on the participants. For now, however, the balance and quality of (most) games have made a fine first impression.

Welcome to the first edition of The Athletic’s Club World Cup daily power rankings, our look at who’s hot, who’s not, and how the struggle for global club supremacy is shaking out. Share your comments below and don’t be shy to disagree. We’ll run the rankings up to before the semifinals.

We will update these rankings at the end of each day’s play. Unlike our pre-tournament rankings that focused on the historical might of each team, this series is designed to live very much in the present. Simply, we’ll use the results of this competition alone to project who has the best chance to win the trophy — as well as teams who appear doomed to an early ticket home.

Coming into the tournament, the bettors’ favorites all came from UEFA’s contingent of clubs. However, the broader story of the 16 group-opening matches was an impressive balance across the confederations. Clubs from South America, Africa, Asia and North America gave their opposite numbers plenty to sweat beyond the mid-day kickoff times under a mid-summer sun.

With that in mind, here’s the state of affairs as the group stage readies its second batches of games.

The Athletic Club World Cup Power Rankings – June 19

1. Bayern Munich (-): Smashed 10 past Auckland but bigger tests await.

2. Paris Saint-Germain (-): European champs made Atléti look like minnows.

3. Manchester City (-): Cherki, Reijnders, and Foden all impressive. Field, beware.

4. Chelsea (-): Creative and controlled opener. Palmer: 1g/2a in last 1,529 minutes.

5. Flamengo (-): Played like a favorite. Chelsea clash immediately must-watch.

6. Juventus (-): Day one’s biggest xG overperformers. Still, showed more intent than throughout 2024-25.

7. River Plate (-): Physicality set a strong tone against Urawa.

8. Inter Milan (-): Only Bayern out-generated their 2.68 xG. Still fell victim to Sergio Ramos.

9. Botafogo (-): Clinical first half, but too comfortable afterwards against Seattle.

10. Real Madrid (-): Still learning Alonsoball. Defense looked shaky. Trust the process?

11. Boca Juniors (-): The field’s best-supported team in Miami. Could rue blown 2-0 lead.

12. Al Hilal (-): Bounou’s heroics preserve point against Madrid. May have won with Mitrović.

13. Palmeiras (-): Outplayed Porto in scoreless draw. Group A’s pacesetter.

14. Benfica (-): Gutsy comeback to spare early blushes. Concerning lack of creativity.

River Plate’s strong support enjoyed an opening game win over Urawa Red Diamonds. (Alika Jenner / FIFA / FIFA via Getty Images)

15. Fluminense (-): Resilient start, but clearly left two more points on table against Dortmund.

16. Mamelodi Sundowns (-): “The Sky is the Limit” after statement win

17. FC Salzburg (-): Like the crops, their performance sure needed the rain.

18. FC Porto (-): Lucky to claim point against Palmeiras. Didn’t buckle under pressure.

19. Borussia Dortmund (-): Sleepwalked through opener. In Jobe We Trust.

20. Atlético Madrid (-): Botafogo (and Seattle) will sense opportunity against reeling Atléti.

21. Seattle Sounders (-): Comeback fell just short. Now come the European giants.

22. Pachuca (-): Could hardly get going against a limited Salzburg.

23. Al Ahly (-): Outplayed Messi’s side for 45, hung tough thereafter.

Lionel Messi and Inter Miami were frustrated in their opener and have some work to do. (Ahmed Awaad / NurPhoto via Getty Images)

24. Los Angeles FC (-): A credible showing against a top Premier League side at full strength.

25. Inter Miami (-): Wasted opportunity to open with a bang. Far too predictable and petulant.

26. Urawa Red Diamonds (-): Created great looks – just couldn’t convert.

27. Monterrey (-): Fought for a draw, but wildly outplayed by Inter.

28. Ulsan HD (-): Gave Mamelodi a game, but couldn’t turn good build-up into threats.

29. Wydad Casablanca (-): 2-0 against City a fair scoreline – and validation of quality.

30. Espérance de Tunis (-): Scrapped with Flamengo for tournament-high 39-foul contest.

31. Al-Ain (-): Rui Patricio sure has fallen off, hasn’t he?

32. Auckland City (-): It can only get better after shipping 10.

(Illustration: Kelsea Petersen / The Athletic; NurPhoto / Getty, Dylan Buell / Getty, Carl Recine / Getty, Angela Weiss / Getty)