Two weeks before the start of the tournament, FIFA announced on Friday that New Zealand champions Auckland City will withdraw from the FIFA Club World Cup.
Auckland City will therefore not participate in the tournament hosted by Doha between the first and eleventh of February, due to the new health measures taken in his country regarding the emerging corona virus.
FIFA said in a statement that “despite the regular correspondence between the International Federation, the club, the New Zealand Federation and the Oceania Federation in recent days, the demands of the New Zealand authorities regarding isolation and quarantine exceed FIFA’s jurisdiction, and therefore, it was not possible to reach a solution.”
After the withdrawal of Auckland City, the FIFA Club World Cup competitions will be limited to Qatar’s host Al Duhail, Al-Ahly (African champion), Bayern Munich (European champion), South Korean Ulsan Hyundai (Asian champion) and Tigress of Mexico (CONCACAF champion).
The winner of the “Copa Libertadores” final between Santos and the Brazilian Palmeiras, scheduled for January 30, will determine the South American representative.
Al-Duhail, who was to meet Auckland City in the preliminary round, included a place in the second round, noting that the tournament draw will take place in the Swiss city of Zurich on Tuesday.