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Cristiano Ronaldo

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Fayez Nureldine/AFP

Cristiano Ronaldo was eliminated from the quarter-finals of the Asian Champions League with Al-Nassr.

The Saudi Arabian club from Riyadh lost 3-1 on penalties to Al-Ain from the United Arab Emirates and thus lost their chance of taking part in the new 2025 Club World Cup.

In the decision from the spot, Ronaldo was the only player on his team to convert a penalty.

In regular time, Al-Nassr turned a 0-2 into a 3-2 and thus saved itself into extra time after the 0-1 in the first leg.

There Al-Ain equalized before Ronaldo converted a penalty in the 118th minute to force the shootout, which was lost: at Al Nassr three shooters missed, at Al-Ain everyone scored.

After the game there was a pack formation between a few players and supervisors; Ronaldo was not involved.

Ronaldo threatens a titleless season with Al-Nassr.

In the Saudi Pro League, the multi-million dollar club, twelve points behind Al-Hilal, only has a theoretical chance of winning the championship.

Only in the national cup are Ronaldo, Sadio Mané and Co. still fighting for the title.

Al-Nassr is in the semi-finals there.

Club World Cup in a new format

Ronaldo will miss the quarter-finals of FIFA President Gianni Infantino's bloated and controversial new premium product, the 2025 Club World Cup.

Of the four starting places from Asia, two have already been awarded to the previous two Champions League winners Al-Hilal and Urawa Red Diamonds.

Third place goes to the winner of the current premier class season - and fourth place is awarded via a ranking list by the Asian Football Confederation AFC.

In this regard, Ronaldo's club is a long way behind the possible qualification rank.

The Club World Cup will be held in a new format in the USA from June 15 to July 13, 2025.

The game is played in the same format as previous World Cup tournaments: There are eight groups with four teams each.

That means: The top two in each group advance to the round of 16.

From there it continues in knockout mode.

From Germany, record champions Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund have been confirmed as participants.

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