.jpg) The Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi hosted the final. | |||||||
| Event | 2018 FIFA Club World Cup | ||||||
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| Date | 22 December 2018 (2018-12-22) | ||||||
| Venue | Zayed Sports City Stadium,Abu Dhabi | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Marcos Llorente(Real Madrid)[1] | ||||||
| Referee | Jair Marrufo(United States)[2] | ||||||
| Attendance | 40,696[1] | ||||||
| Weather | Clear night 22 °C (72 °F) 65%humidity[2] | ||||||
←2017 2019 → | |||||||
The2018 FIFA Club World Cup final was the final match of the2018 FIFA Club World Cup, an international clubassociation football tournament hosted by the United Arab Emirates. It was the 15th final of theFIFA Club World Cup, aFIFA-organised tournament between the winners of the six continental confederations, as well as the host nation's league champions.
The final was contested betweenSpanish club and defending championsReal Madrid (who won the last two editions of the competition), representingUEFA as the reigning champions of theUEFA Champions League, andEmirati clubAl Ain, representing the host nation as the reigning champions of theUAE Pro-League.[3] The match was played at theZayed Sports City Stadium inAbu Dhabi on 22 December 2018.[4]
Real Madrid won the final 4–1 for their third consecutive and fourth overall FIFA Club World Cup title, breaking the tie withBarcelona to become the outright record winners of the competition.[5]
In the following table, finals until 2005 were in the FIFA Club World Championship era, since 2006 were in the FIFA Club World Cup era.
| Team | Confederation | Qualification for tournament | Previous club world championship finals |
|---|---|---|---|
 Real Madrid | UEFA | Winners of the2017–18 UEFA Champions League | 32014,2016,2017 |
 Al Ain | AFC (Hosts) | Winners of the2017–18 UAE Pro-League | None |
Zayed Sports City Stadium inAbu Dhabi was announced as the venue for the final in May 2018, reprising its role as the final venue in2009,2010, and2017.[6] It is the largest stadium in the United Arab Emirates and is primarily used by theEmirati national football team.[7] Zayed Sports City Stadium hosted the1996 Asian Cup Final and is planned to host several matches in the2019 AFC Asian Cup. It is also featured on the 200Dirham banknote.[8] The 43,000-seat stadium opened in 1980 and also hosted matches in the2003 FIFA U-20 World Cup and the2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup.[9][10]
Real Madrid qualified for the Club World Cup as winners of the2017–18 UEFA Champions League by defeatingLiverpool in thefinal.[11] The club won three of the four previous editions of the Club World Cup: in2014,2016 and2017.[12] This was their fifth participation and third consecutive appearance in the tournament, both a record for European teams. The match was their fourth overall final (after2014,2016 and2017), tying the record withBarcelona. The match also was their third consecutive final, extending their record set in the previous edition. The match was the 14th consecutive and overall final featuring a European team (with only thefirst final in 2000 including no team from Europe), and the 8th overall and 5th consecutive final featuring a Spanish team, all extending the competition records. If Real Madrid were to win, they would become the outright record winners of the Club World Cup with four titles, breaking their tie with Barcelona for the record. A win would also extended the records for most consecutive titles for a team (3), most titles for a confederation (11 for UEFA), most consecutive titles for a confederation (6 for UEFA, breaking the tie set by European teams between2007 and2011), most titles for a nation (7 for Spain), and most consecutive titles for a nation (5 for Spain).[13]
Al Ain qualified for their first Club World Cup as winners of the2017–18 season of theUAE Pro-League, the top-level league in the United Arab Emirates.[14] Al Ain was the first Emirati team to reach the Club World Cup final,[15] as well as the second Asian team (afterKashima Antlers in 2016). The final was also the third final to feature the host representative (afterCorinthians in 2000,Raja Casablanca in 2013 and Kashima Antlers in 2016). If Al Ain were to win, they would have become the first team outside of Europe and South America to win the Club World Cup, as well as the second host representative to win the tournament (after Corinthians in2000).[13]
The final was the second between an Asian and European team, after Real Madrid won against Kashima Antlers in the 2016 final. The final was also the third final between the host representative and a European team, both won by the European team, withBayern Munich winning against Raja Casablanca in2013, in addition to the aforementioned 2016 final. The match was the fourth final not to feature a South American team after2010, 2013 and 2016 (all of which the European teams won).[13]
| Real Madrid | Team | Al Ain | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opponent | Result | 2018 FIFA Club World Cup | Opponent | Result |
| First round |  Team Wellington | 3–3 (a.e.t.)(4–3p) | ||
| Second round |  Espérance de Tunis | 3–0 | ||
 Kashima Antlers | 3–1 | Semi-finals |  River Plate | 2–2 (a.e.t.)(5–4p) |
As European champions, Real Madrid received abye to the semi-final round, where they facedAsian championsKashima Antlers of Japan. Kashima, who had defeatedCONCACAF championsGuadalajara, were defeated by Real Madrid in the 2016 final.[16] Madrid defeated the Antlers 3–1 on ahat-trick scored byGareth Bale over 11 minutes of play.[17] Bale scored in the 44th minute and added two goals in the 53rd and 55th minutes to open the second half;Shoma Doi scored a consolation goal for Kashima in the 78th minute after it was ruled onside by thevideo assistant referee.[18][19]
In the first round on 12 December, Al Ain defeatedTeam Wellington in apenalty shoot-out following a 3–3 draw at their home stadium,Hazza bin Zayed Stadium. Wellington, a semi-professional club that qualified as theOFC Champions League champion, entered halftime with a 3–1 lead that was cut back by an equalising volley fromMarcus Berg.[20] The match remained scoreless after extra time and advanced to a penalty shoot-out, which Al Ain won 4–3 after five rounds after goalkeeperKhalid Eisa made two saves.[21][22]
Al Ain advanced to face African championsEspérance de Tunis in the second round match, held three days later at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium. The team defeated Espérance 3–0 in anupset that began with two goals scored in the opening 16 minutes.[23] Al Ain produced a larger upset in the semi-finals, defeatingCopa Libertadores championsRiver Plate in a penalty shoot-out to advance to the Club World Cup final.[24] The match began with two early goals for River Plate scored byRafael Santos Borré following an opening strike from Berg; after an equalising goal was disallowed by thevideo assistant referee,Caio Lucas Fernandes scored for Al Ain in the 51st minute to draw the teams level at 2–2. After a scoreless extra time, aided by goalkeeper Essa's saves, Al Ain defeated River Plate 5–4 in a penalty shoot-out, its second of the competition,[25] with Essa making one save on River'sEnzo Pérez.[26][27][28] The semi-final upset of River was called the "greatest achievement" in Emirati football history by Al Ain managerZoran Mamić.[25]
Real Madrid had 70 percent of possession in the first half, taking advantage of Al Ain's defensive lapses to produce 11 shots.[29] After a saved chance from Al Ain'sHussein El Shahat,Luka Modrić opened scoring for Madrid in the 14th minute with a left-footed shot.[30]Caio attempted to equalize a minute later, but was found to beoffside. The half ended with a 1–0 lead for Madrid, with several later shots saved by Al Ain goalkeeperKhalid Eisa.[31]
Madrid opened the second half with another series of attacks while retaining possession of the ball, finding its second goal in the 60th minute on a long-distance strike byMarcos Llorente.[30] The pace of the match slowed as Al Ain looked to find a consolation goal, with Caio taking advantage of a defensive mistake bySergio Ramos but unable to score against goalkeeperThibaut Courtois.[29] Ramos responded by scoring in the 79th minute, a header on acorner kick taken by Modrić after a counter-attack, to give Real Madrid a three-goal lead. Six minutes later, a free kick taken by Caio found left-backTsukasa Shiotani, who scored Al Ain's only goal of the match.[31] Instoppage time, anown goal was scored by Al Ain'sYahia Nader on a cross by Madrid substituteVinícius Júnior; it was Madrid's final goal to extend their lead to 4–1.[30]
          Real Madrid[32] |    Al Ain[32] |
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Man of the Match: Assistant referees:[2] | Match rules[33]
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With their win, Real Madrid became the outright record winners of the Club World Cup with four titles. They also extended the record for most consecutive titles with their third in a row.[5][31] It was the only trophy won by managerSantiago Solari during his reign at Real Madrid, who was hired in October 2018 and fired in March 2019; Solari complimented Al Ain on their run to the final, calling it a "remarkable achievement".[35]
Marcos Llorente, who scored one goal in the match, won the man of the match award for the final.[5]Gareth Bale of Real Madrid won the Golden Ball award as the best player of the tournament, finishing as joint-top scorer with three goals (tied withRafael Santos Borré ofRiver Plate).Caio of Al Ain won the Silver Ball award behind Bale. Real Madrid also won the FIFA Fair Play Award with the best disciplinary record at the tournament.[36]
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| Finals | |
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