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Carlo Ancelotti was adamant: the Club World Cup did not matter. He didn't care for it, and he insisted hat Real Madrid would not take it seriously either. In fact, his Blancos team could even refuse the opportunity to play in the competition.
"FIFA forgets that players and teams will not participate in the new Club World Cup. A single Real Madrid match is worth €20 million and FIFA wants to give us that amount for the entire tournament. Negative. Like us, other clubs will refuse the invitation," the then-Madrid manager said in June 2024.
Within 24 hours, both he and the club themselves had a remarkable change of heart. Suddenly, they were pro-Club World Cup. Ancelotti insisted his comments had been taken out of context, while Madrid put out a defiant statement: "Our club will take part, as planned, in this official competition which we face with pride and with the utmost enthusiasm to once again make our millions of fans all over the world dream of a new title."
Since then, Madrid have been up for this summer's tournament in the United States. However, in recent weeks, their obsession with being crowned world champions has intensified. After their domestic and European seasons crumbled, Madrid turned their focus fully towards retooling for competition, and after bringing in some big names - in the form of both players and managers - Los Blancos have made it clear that they are playing to win.
