BARCELONA, June 12 (AFP): FIFA's inaugural expanded Club World Cup in the United States has one billion dollars of prize money on the line but will be missing some of the game's star names.
The news agency Sport highlights five players who will not be lighting up stadiums across the United States once it gets underway this weekend:
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Liverpool finished as English champions, but like Spain's Barcelona and Italy's Napoli, will not be at the Club World Cup, because of the convoluted qualification process.
That means Egyptian winger Salah, who broke the Premier League record for goal involvements, with 29 strikes and 18 assists, misses out.
After a tiring season in which he faded in the latter months Salah might not be too upset about having a summer off. The winger posted a photo of himself sunbathing by the beach on Instagram.
However it will be a shame that African football icon Salah, captain Virgil van Dijk and others miss out on the chance of a potential rematch against their Champions League conquerors Paris Saint-Germain.
Liverpool transfer target Florian Wirtz will also be absent, as his side Bayer Leverkusen did not qualify.
Lamine Yamal (Barcelona)
No player in world football this season has offered more excitement than Barcelona's 17-year-old star Lamine Yamal.
Cristiano Ronaldo (Al Nassr)
Messi will also not go up against his long-time rival Ronaldo in the US.
The Portuguese striker, 40, was reported to be looking for a way to play in the tournament.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino had suggested Ronaldo might move from Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr to a team who had reached the event, saying that "discussions" were being held over it.
Five-time Ballon d'Or winner Ronaldo, who won the Nations League with Portugal last weekend, indicated after the game however he was set to stay at Al Nassr.
"Some teams reached out to me," the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star revealed last Saturday on the eve of the Nations League final.
"Some made sense and others did not, but you can't try and do everything. You can't catch every ball."
Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
Champions League semi-finalists Arsenal are another team to miss out and after finishing the season trophyless, the Club World Cup would have been a chance to win some silverware.
England international Saka's only club trophy, excluding the FA Community Shield, was an FA Cup win with Arsenal in 2020.
Mikel Arteta's side showed this season they have improved to the point where they are in contention for major honours, including knocking out Real Madrid in the Champions League, but came up just short.
Neymar (Santos)
Brazilian icon Neymar struggled with injury at Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia and returned to Santos in January 2025, hoping to get fit and firing ahead of next summer's World Cup.
The 33-year-old forward, despite fading with age, is still one of the biggest names in the game and his absence is also a blow in a commercial sense.
"Neymar, what can I say about him? He's an outstanding player, who, for me, in my football cycle, is in the top three, with Cristiano and Messi," said Brazil midfielder Casemiro.
