"We are the inaugural champions."
Chelsea won 3-0 against Paris Saint-Germain (France) in the tournament final held on the 14th at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. They earned a total of £84 million (about 156.2 billion won), including the championship prize.
A total of 32 clubs participated in this tournament. FIFA allocated $1 billion in participant compensation, with $525 million (about 724 billion won) as participation rewards and $475 million (about 655.1 billion won) as performance-based prize money.
Participant compensation was distributed according to the continental affiliation and UEFA club coefficient rankings. European clubs received between $12.81 million (about 17.6 billion won) and $38.19 million (about 52.6 billion won). South American clubs received $15.21 million (about 20.9 billion won), while Asian, African, North American, and Oceanian clubs received $9.55 million (about 13.1 billion won).
The club with the highest revenue was, of course, Chelsea. They secured a total of £84 million, including the championship prize. The runner-up, Paris Saint-Germain, received £78.4 million (about 145.8 billion won), and Real Madrid obtained £67 million (about 124.6 billion won). However, this was only about 4% of Real Madrid's annual club revenue of £909 million (about 1.6794 trillion won).
There was also a team that recorded dramatic revenue changes. Auckland City from New Zealand, despite losing all group stage matches, acquired £3.3 million (about 6.1 billion won). This is seven times the club's total revenue of £488,000 (about 900 million won) for 2024. Soccer finance expert Kieran Maguire noted, "The prize money received by Auckland City could disrupt the competitive balance within the league," and added, "If that money is invested in player acquisitions, the gap in strength with other clubs in New Zealand will widen."
This tournament also had direct impacts on the transfer market. Borussia Dortmund (Germany) secured £57.9 million (about 107.7 billion won) by reaching the quarterfinals. This amounts to 65% of their summer transfer budget. They covered the transfer fee of £27 million (about 50.2 billion won) for Jude Bellingham, acquired from Sunderland, with the tournament prize money.
Chelsea also supplemented its finances through tournament revenue. They spent a total of £198 million (about 368.3 billion won) in the summer transfer market but filled this with £84 million (about 156.2 billion won) from Club World Cup revenue. Manchester City earned £38 million (about 70.6 billion won) despite being eliminated in the round of 16, offsetting the transfer fee of £31 million (about 57.6 billion won) for Ryan Ait-Nouri acquired from Wolverhampton.
Starting as a first choice, Caldwell, who completely shut down PSG's Khvicha, expressed confidence by saying, "Our goal from the very beginning was to win the Club World Cup. When I said that, people thought I was crazy, but now I will say the same goal in the Premier League and Champions League."
Caldwell placed great significance on winning the Club World Cup. He said, "The trophy we lifted this time is the most important among the trophies I have. I believe the Club World Cup means more than the Champions League. We are the first team to win the new Club World Cup," emphasizing a special sense of pride.
He added, "The 3-0 victory over PSG was an incredibly huge win. I believe that if we continue to lift trophies, everyone will acknowledge us," and stated, "But the future for next season is uncertain. We are prepared, and we must wait for next season."
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