All eight groups in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup consist of four teams. Group H will include these four teams: Real Madrid, Al-Hilal, RB Salzburg, and Pachuca. Those four will fight for the top two spots in the group to advance to the tournament’s knockout stages. Here are their odds on DraftKings Sportsbook to advance:
Let’s take a look at the years all four clubs have had, then predict who will advance and make our picks.
Real Madrid
Trophy-less seasons are unacceptable for Real Madrid. This was one unacceptable season. They finished second to Spanish rivals Barcelona in La Liga and the Copa del Rey, losing the latter in extra time. On top of that, Madrid were shattered in the Champions League quarterfinals by Arsenal, putting a bow on a rough season. All this despite an incredible debut season for Kylian Mbappe.
This marks a transitory period for Madrid, as manager Carlo Ancelotti leaves to take the helm of the Brazilian national team. Now, Xabi Alonso and his deep Real ties take the helm. The former Madrid player (under Ancelotti no less) previously managed their U14 squad, and most recently managed Bayer Leverkusen. The club produced a historic 2023/24 season where they went unbeaten in 51 straight matches on their way to the first domestic title in club history. His first task will be to integrate their new big signing, Trent Alexander-Arnold.
The squad is loaded with talent. Mbappe and Jude Bellingham will be Ballon d’Or candidates for years to come. Vinicius Jr. nearly won the award in 2024. TAA is still at the top of his game, Rodrygo and Endrick are exciting attacking talents, and Arda Güler will feature prominently in the midfield group. It’s a lot of toys for Xabi Alonso to play with.
Al-Hilal
The top Saudi clubs have made major moves over the past few transfer seasons to bring in big-time talent. Al-Hilal has been one of those squads. In the past two years, Al-Hilal have added Neymar on a record 90M transfer fee, Rúben Neves, Sergej Milinković-Savić, Aleksander Mitrović, Renan Lodi, Kalidou Koulibaly, João Cancelo, and Matheus Pereira. That’s a lot of big names for a club that doesn’t play European football.
It’s worked well for the Saudi side, who won a league title this past season despite the Neymar transfer being a wash. They finished runners up this year, and will look to get back into the top spot with their new man at the helm.
Nabbing the manager of an Inter Milan team that made the Champions League Final is a big step forward for Al-Hilal. The questions around the big-spending Saudi clubs always center around their competition level with the European teams. This tournament gives them a great chance to prove they belong.
Red Bull Salzburg
No team in the Austrian Bundesliga can claim dominance like RB Salzburg. They’ve overtaken the league since being acquired by the Red Bull brand in 2005. Salzburg has finished no lower than second in the Bundesliga since 2010, winning 11 league titles in the past 14 seasons. After two straight season in second place, they’re looking to make a splash and get back to the top. That began with the addition of 20-year-old Japanese star Sota Kitano.
Kitano is expected to be ready for the Club World Cup, as Salzburg will be in a heavily contested battle for qualification in this group. It could be neck-and-neck between Al-Hilal and Salzburg, and their fixture will be crucial for deciding the knockout rounds.
Pachuca
One of two Liga MX teams in the Club World Cup, Pachuca has its work cut out to represent Mexico in this tournament. The 2022/23 league winners face an uphill battle to qualify in this one, as their results have been less desirable recently.
Pachuca hasn’t been close to the top since that ’23 season, which qualified them for this tournament. A distant fourth on paper in Group H, I’m not expecting great things for them in this tournament.
Prediction and Pick
I have no doubt Real Madrid will advance in this group. The question becomes the fight for the second team.
Let’s go ahead and tease out the matches here. Madrid and Al-Hilal face off in the first contest, while Salzburg faces Pachuca. That sounds like three points for Madrid and three for Salzburg. Then the pivotal Al-Hilal/Salzburg contest goes down while Madrid faces Pachuca. If Salzburg pulls a draw from that one and Madrid wins, it would clinch advancement for Madrid and put Salzburg in the driver’s seat before the two face off on the last day.
That game would also mean Salzburg is the only team with anything to play for. If Madrid chooses to roll with a B squad, Salzburg can backdoor the group. So I’m taking a shot in the dark and forecasting the group at Salzburg 1st/Real Madrid 2nd. That’s a tasty +900 play.
