June 24 – Atletico Madrid have become the first high-profile casualty of FIFA’s new-look Club World Cup, failing to progress beyond the group stage after a bruising campaign that saw them edged out on goal difference by Paris Saint-Germain and Brazil’s Botafogo.
The Spanish giants, led by long-time head coach Diego Simeone, were effectively undone by a disastrous opening-day 4-0 defeat to PSG — a result that left them with too much ground to make up despite winning their next two matches. A narrow, hard-fought victory over Botafogo offered a glimmer of hope, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the early setback.
It marks a fourth straight season without silverware for Simeone’s Atleti, who continue to search for a way back to the elite tier of European football. The tournament also sealed Julian Alvarez’s first season without a trophy, a rare occurrence for the Argentine forward whose young career has already been laced with silverware.
While Botafogo surprised many by punching above their weight, Atletico’s exit adds fuel to the ongoing debate about the depth and quality of Spanish football beyond Real Madrid.
LaLiga champions FC Barcelona failed to qualify for the tournament, having missed out on FIFA’s top-two coefficient spots. Their absence, paired with Atletico’s early exit, raises the question of how a full-strength Barça side might have fared in this expanded format.
For Atletico, the post-mortem will be swift and pointed. For the rest of the field, their early exit serves as a warning — reputations count for little in this new world order.
There have already been calls to question Simeone’s future at the club. He is already the best-paid coach in Europe but has delivered just one major trophy since 2016, claiming the LaLiga title in 2020-21. This early exit, from what is really a winnable competition, leaves a bad taste for Atleti fans to end a disappointing season with a whimper.
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at moc.l1750799019labto1750799019ofdlr1750799019owedi1750799019sni@g1750799019niwe.1750799019yrrah1750799019