2015 FIFA Club World Cup

2015 FIFA Club World Cup
FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2015
presented by Alibaba E-Auto
Alibaba E-Auto プレゼンツ
FIFAクラブワールドカップ ジャパン2015
Tournament details
Host country Japan
Dates 10–20 December 2015
Teams 7 (from 6 confederations)
Venue(s) 2 (in 2 host cities)
Final positions
Champions Spain Barcelona (3rd title)
Runners-up Argentina River Plate
Third place Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima
Fourth place China Guangzhou Evergrande
Tournament statistics
Matches played 8
Goals scored 21 (2.63 per match)
Attendance 272,312 (34,039 per match)
Top scorer(s) Uruguay Luis Suárez (5 goals)
Best player Uruguay Luis Suárez
Fair play award Spain Barcelona

The 2015 FIFA Club World Cup (officially known as the FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2015 presented by Alibaba E-Auto for sponsorship reasons)[1] was the 12th edition of the FIFA Club World Cup, a FIFA-organised international club football tournament between the champion clubs from each of the six continental confederations, as well as the national league champion from the host country.[2] The tournament was hosted by Japan between 10–20 December 2015.[3]

Host bids

The application process for the 2015–2016 as well as the 2017–2018 editions, i.e. two hosts, each hosting two years, began in February 2014.[4] Member associations interested in hosting had to submit a declaration of interest by 30 March 2014, and provide the complete set of bidding documents by 25 August 2014.[5] The FIFA Executive Committee was to select the hosts at their meeting in Morocco in December 2014.[6] However, no such decision regarding the 2015–2016 host was made until 2015.

The following countries expressed an interest in bidding to host the tournament:[7]

Japan was officially confirmed as the host of the 2015 and 2016 tournaments on 23 April 2015.[3]

Proposed change to format

Under a proposed change to the competition, led by the Oceania Football Confederation, the new format would mean a removal of the knockout rounds for the quarter-finals and play-off round, replacing it with two round-robin groups of three teams, consisting of two teams from the host nation and the champions of AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, and OFC, with the group winners advancing to the semi-finals to play the champions of CONMEBOL and UEFA. This would allow for all teams to play at least two matches, avoiding the current situation where the loser of the play-off round would play only one match.[9] A decision on this would be taken after the 2014 competition finished. However, according to the press release of the host country, the tournament will continue with the original seven-team format in 2015.[3]

Qualified teams

Team Confederation Qualification Qualified date Participation
Enter in the semi-finals
Argentina River Plate CONMEBOL Winners of the 2015 Copa Libertadores 22 July 2015 1st
Spain Barcelona UEFA Winners of the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League 6 June 2015 4th (Previous: 2006, 2009, 2011)
Enter in the quarter-finals
China Guangzhou Evergrande AFC Winners of the 2015 AFC Champions League 21 November 2015 2nd (Previous: 2013)
Democratic Republic of the Congo TP Mazembe CAF Winners of the 2015 CAF Champions League 8 November 2015 3rd (Previous: 2009, 2010)
Mexico América CONCACAF Winners of the 2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League 29 April 2015 2nd (Previous: 2006)
Enter in the play-off for quarter-finals
New Zealand Auckland City OFC Winners of the 2014–15 OFC Champions League 26 April 2015 7th (Previous: 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014)
Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima AFC (Hosts) Winners of the 2015 J1 League 5 December 2015 2nd (Previous: 2012)

1 In bold: Previous tournament winners
2 River Plate qualified as the CONMEBOL representatives on 22 July 2015 when UANL, who are from Mexico and not eligible to represent CONMEBOL in the FIFA Club World Cup, were confirmed as their opponents in the final.

Venues

On 22 May 2015, Nagai Stadium in Osaka and International Stadium Yokohama in Yokohama were named as the two venues that would be used in the tournament.[10]

Osaka Yokohama
Nagai Stadium International Stadium Yokohama
34°36′50.83″N 135°31′6.42″E / 34.6141194°N 135.5184500°E / 34.6141194; 135.5184500 (Nagai Stadium) 35°30′35″N 139°36′20″E / 35.50972°N 139.60556°E / 35.50972; 139.60556 (International Stadium Yokohama)
Capacity: 47,000 Capacity: 72,327

Match officials

The appointed match officials are:[11][12]

Confederation Referee Assistant referees
AFC Iran Alireza Faghani Iran Reza Sokhandan
Iran Mohammadreza Mansouri
CAF Cameroon Sidi Alioum Cameroon Evarist Menkouande
Cameroon Elvis Guy Noupue Nguegoue
CONCACAF El Salvador Joel Aguilar El Salvador Juan Francisco Zumba
Mexico Marvin César Torrentera
CONMEBOL Colombia Wilmar Roldán Colombia Alexander Guzmán
Colombia Cristian Jairo de la Cruz
OFC New Zealand Matthew Conger New Zealand Simon Lount
Tonga Tevita Makasini
UEFA Sweden Jonas Eriksson Sweden Mathias Klasenius
Sweden Daniel Warnmark
Host (support) Japan Ryuji Sato Japan Akane Yagi

Squads

Each team must name a 23-man squad (three of whom must be goalkeepers) by the FIFA deadline of 30 November 2015. The squads of six of the seven teams were released by FIFA on 3 December 2015 (except Sanfrecce Hiroshima, who only confirmed their place in the tournament on 5 December 2015).[13][14] Injury replacements are allowed until 24 hours before the team's first match.[2]

Matches

The schedule of the tournament, together with the emblem, was unveiled on 24 August 2015.[15][16]

A draw was held on 23 September 2015, 14:00 CEST (UTC+2), at the FIFA headquarters in Zürich, Switzerland, to determine the positions in the bracket for the three teams which enter the quarter-finals.[17][18]

If a match is tied after normal playing time:[2]

Play-off Quarter-finals Semi-finals Final
 10 December – Yokohama                          
 Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima  2   13 December – Osaka        
 New Zealand Auckland City  0      Democratic Republic of the Congo TP Mazembe  0
16 December – Osaka
   Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima  3    
 Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima  0
     Argentina River Plate  1  
20 December – Yokohama
 Argentina River Plate  0
13 December – Osaka
   Spain Barcelona  3
 Mexico América  1
17 December – Yokohama
 China Guangzhou Evergrande  2    
 Spain Barcelona  3
Fifth place Third place
     China Guangzhou Evergrande  0  
 Mexico América  2  Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima  2
 Democratic Republic of the Congo TP Mazembe  1  China Guangzhou Evergrande  1
16 December – Osaka 20 December – Yokohama

All times are local, JST (UTC+9).[19]

Play-off for quarter-finals

Quarter-finals

13 December 2015 (2015-12-13)
16:00
América Mexico 1–2 China Guangzhou Evergrande
Peralta  55' Report Zheng Long  80'
Paulinho  90+3'
Nagai Stadium, Osaka
Attendance: 18,772[21]
Referee: Jonas Eriksson (Sweden)

13 December 2015 (2015-12-13)
19:30
TP Mazembe Democratic Republic of the Congo 0–3 Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima
Report Shiotani  44'
Chiba  56'
Asano  78'
Nagai Stadium, Osaka
Attendance: 23,609[22]
Referee: Wilmar Roldán (Colombia)

Match for fifth place

16 December 2015 (2015-12-16)
16:30
América Mexico 2–1 Democratic Republic of the Congo TP Mazembe
Benedetto  19'
Zúñiga  28'		 Report Kalaba  43'
Nagai Stadium, Osaka
Attendance: 11,686[23]
Referee: Alireza Faghani (Iran)

Semi-finals

16 December 2015 (2015-12-16)
19:30
Sanfrecce Hiroshima Japan 0–1 Argentina River Plate
Report Alario  72'
Nagai Stadium, Osaka
Attendance: 20,133[24]
Referee: Jonas Eriksson (Sweden)

17 December 2015 (2015-12-17)
19:30
Barcelona Spain 3–0 China Guangzhou Evergrande
Suárez  39', 50', 67' (pen.) Report

Match for third place

Final

20 December 2015 (2015-12-20)
19:30
River Plate Argentina 0–3 Spain Barcelona
Report Messi  36'
Suárez  49', 68'

Goalscorers

Rank Player Team Goals
1 Uruguay Luis Suárez Spain Barcelona 5
2 Brazil Paulinho China Guangzhou Evergrande 2
Brazil Douglas Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima
Japan Tsukasa Shiotani Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima
5 Argentina Darío Benedetto Mexico América 1
Mexico Oribe Peralta Mexico América
Mexico Martín Eduardo Zúñiga Mexico América
Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona
China Zheng Long China Guangzhou Evergrande
Zambia Rainford Kalaba Democratic Republic of the Congo TP Mazembe
Argentina Lucas Alario Argentina River Plate
Japan Takuma Asano Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima
Japan Kazuhiko Chiba Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima
Japan Yusuke Minagawa Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima

Final ranking

Per statistical convention in football, matches decided in extra time are counted as wins and losses, while matches decided by penalty shoot-out are counted as draws.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Spain Barcelona (UEFA) 2 2 0 0 6 0 +6 6
2 Argentina River Plate (CONMEBOL) 2 1 0 1 1 3 −2 3
3 Japan Sanfrecce Hiroshima (AFC) (H) 4 3 0 1 7 2 +5 9
4 China Guangzhou Evergrande (AFC) 3 1 0 2 3 6 −3 3
5 Mexico América (CONCACAF) 2 1 0 1 3 3 0 3
6 Democratic Republic of the Congo TP Mazembe (CAF) 2 0 0 2 1 5 −4 0
7 New Zealand Auckland City (OFC) 1 0 0 1 0 2 −2 0
Source: FIFA
(H) Host.

Awards

The following awards were given at the conclusion of the tournament.[28]

adidas
Golden Ball		 adidas
Silver Ball		 adidas
Bronze Ball
Uruguay Luis Suárez
(Barcelona)
Argentina Lionel Messi
(Barcelona)
Spain Andrés Iniesta
(Barcelona)
FIFA Fair Play Award
Spain Barcelona

References

  1. ↑ "Alibaba E-Auto signs as Presenting Partner of the FIFA Club World Cup". FIFA.com. 9 December 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 "Regulations – FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2015" (PDF). FIFA.
  3. 1 2 3 "Japan set to host continental champions in 2015 and 2016". FIFA.com. 23 April 2015.
  4. ↑ "Blatter: A legacy for the future". FIFA.com. 19 December 2013.
  5. ↑ "Bidding process opened for eight FIFA competitions". FIFA.com. 19 December 2013.
  6. ↑ "India may get to host FIFA Club World Cup". India.com. 15 October 2014.
  7. ↑ "High interest in hosting FIFA competitions". FIFA.com. 9 May 2014.
  8. ↑ "India not bidding for 2015 and 2016 Fifa Club World Cups". The Times of India. 13 November 2014. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  9. ↑ "Football: More matches likely in Club Cup". New Zealand Herald. 30 November 2014. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  10. ↑ "Osaka to debut as a FIFA Club World Cup venue". FIFA.com. 22 May 2015.
  11. ↑ "Referees and assistant referees selected". 10 November 2015.
  12. ↑ "Referees & Assistant referees for FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2015" (PDF). FIFA.com.
  13. ↑ "Squad lists released for Club World Cup". FIFA.com. 3 December 2015.
  14. ↑ "FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2015 - Squad Lists" (PDF). FIFA.com.
  15. ↑ "Tickets for the FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2015".
  16. ↑ "Japan Reveals Official Emblem for FIFA Club World Cup". FIFA.com. 24 August 2015.
  17. ↑ "The draw LIVE on FIFA.com". 22 September 2015.
  18. ↑ "Draw for Japan 2015 conducted in Zurich". FIFA.com. 23 September 2015.
  19. ↑ "Match Schedule – FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2015" (PDF). FIFA.com.
  20. ↑ "Match report Sanfrecce Hiroshima - Auckland City FC 2:0 (1:0)" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 10 December 2015. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
  21. ↑ "Match report Club América - Guangzhou Evergrande FC 1:2 (0:0)" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 13 December 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  22. ↑ "Match report TP Mazembe - Sanfrecce Hiroshima 0:3 (0:1)" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 13 December 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  23. ↑ "Match report Club América - TP Mazembe 2:1 (2:1)" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 16 December 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  24. ↑ "Match report Sanfrecce Hiroshima - River Plate 0:1 (0:0)" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 16 December 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  25. ↑ "Match report FC Barcelona - Guangzhou Evergrande FC 3:0 (1:0)" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 17 December 2015. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  26. ↑ "Match report Sanfrecce Hiroshima - Guangzhou Evergrande FC 2:1 (0:1)" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 20 December 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  27. ↑ "Match report River Plate - FC Barcelona 0:3 (0:1)" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 20 December 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  28. ↑ "Barcelona trio sweep awards". FIFA.com. 20 December 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2015.

External links

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