Real Madrid have issued a statement to confirm that they will take part in FIFA's expanded Club World Cup next summer, hours after their coach Carlo Ancelotti said they would refuse to play in the tournament.
Madrid had already qualified for the 32-team event in the United States by virtue of winning the 2022 Champions League, a competition they won for a 15th time earlier this month.
Ancelotti had cast doubt on their involvement. "Players and clubs will not participate in that tournament," he told Italian newspaper Il Giornale.
"A single Real Madrid match is worth €20m and FIFA wants to give us that amount for the entire cup. Like us, other clubs will refuse the invitation."
However Madrid were swift to contradict their manager and issued a statement to insist that they will take part in the tournament, denying there was ever any question surrounding their participation.
The statement read: "Real Madrid CF would like to announce that at no time has there been any question regarding our participation in the new Club World Cup to be organised by FIFA in the coming 2024/2025 season.
"Our club will therefore take part, as planned, in this official competition and we are proud and excited to be involved in it and we will once again inspire our millions of fans all over the world with another trophy."
The World Leagues Association – which includes the Premier League as a member – and world players' union FIFPRO last month threatened FIFA with legal action unless the Club World Cup was rescheduled.
They said in a letter to FIFA that the scheduling of the competition would cause "economic harm" to domestic leagues and would push players "beyond their limits".
FIFA has refused to back down, saying it was "fully within its rights" to set the parameters of the competition.
The Club World Cup does have the backing of the European Club Association, but Real have not been members of that organisation since the ill-fated formation of the European Super League in April 2021.
Meanwhile three fans who racially abused Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr during a match in Valencia last year have each been sentenced to eight months in prison, La Liga announced on Monday.
The league said the conviction of the trio over an incident at Valencia's Mestalla stadium on 21 May, 2023 was the first for racist abuse at a football match in Spain.
The individuals have also been given a two-year stadium ban from any venue hosting La Liga matches, or games held under the jurisdiction of the Spanish football federation.
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