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As part of the new format, four slots have been allocated to Africa, and the winners of the previous four continents competitions will be awarded automatic qualification spots.
Football's governing body, FIFA, has approved plans for an expanded Club World Cup in 2025, which will feature 32 teams, with Wydad Casablanca, Al Ahly and winners of the inaugural Africa Super League handed automatic slots.
The new format of the tournament will consist of eight groups of four, with the top two teams of each group advancing to the knockout round.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has been vocal about his desire to expand the Club World Cup and include more teams from around the world.
Speaking in 2016, he stated that "the world has changed and that's why we need to make the Club World Cup more interesting for teams, and also for fans around the world."
As part of the new format, four slots have been allocated to Africa, and the winners of the previous four continents competitions will be awarded automatic qualification spots.
Wydad and Al Ahly, the previous winners of the CAF Champions League, have already secured two of the four slots available to African teams.
The winner of the 2022/23 CAF Champions League will also earn a spot in the tournament, and with the launch of the Africa Super League coming in the 2023/2024 season, the winner of that tournament will also receive a qualification spot.
Twelve European clubs have also been invited to take part in the tournament with two slots have been reserved for the winners of the UEFA Champions League, with the last two winners, Chelsea and Real Madrid, being guaranteed spots in the 2025 edition.
Two additional spots will be issued to the winners of the 2023 and 2024 Champions League while also UEFA Champions League runners-up and UEFA Europa League winners could get slots alongside six of the best ranked eligible teams based on the sporting criteria.
As the Copa Libertadores is currently due to be held in November, South American clubs would not have finished their qualification tournaments in time to qualify for the new Club World Cup that year.
The current seven-team format will continue in its regular December slot in 2024 and in the years between the larger tournaments. The new tournament is scheduled for 2025 and then 2029.
The current holders of the Club World Cup are Real Madrid, who won the trophy for a record fifth time after defeating Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal last year.
Saudi Arabia will host this year's competition in a 10-day event between December 12-22. The country has been increasing its involvement in top-level sports and has hosted high-profile events such as boxing fights, WWE events, and invested in Newcastle United.
The FIFA Congress also ratified changes to the international match calendar 2025, with one extended break taking in four matches in late September and early October replacing two separate windows in September and October.
The governing body said that the other windows — in November, March and June — would remain unchanged.
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