Real Madrid were coasting towards a Club World Cup semi-final against Kylian Mbappe’s old side Paris Saint-Germain until a frantic finish to their match against Borussia Dortmund at MetLife Stadium.
Xabi Alonso’s team emerged victorious but only after nine minutes of pure drama in added time at the end of their quarter-final in New York. There were three goals, a red card and one spectacular save from the Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois — all after the clock had reached the regulation 90 minutes.
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Madrid were 2-0 up within 20 minutes and dominant thanks to goals from two Garcias from their academy — Gonzalo and Fran (no relation).
And they looked to be in complete control as the clock wound down at the end of the game, only for the match to burst to life when Maximilian Beier pulled one back for Dortmund in the 93rd minute.
That set the wheels in motion for a wild period of added time…
Breaking down a blockbuster finish at MetLife
QUE GOLAZO!!!!
🎯 MBAPPÉ GOES AIRBORNE! HE’S BACK!
Overhead kick. Back of the net. Instant classic.
Superstar stuff from Kylian. 🌟 pic.twitter.com/lx646RuR5w— DAZN Football (@DAZNFootball) July 5, 2025
It was the final act of the game, after 99 minutes had been played.
The win means Madrid face PSG back here at MetLife on Wednesday night. The other semi-final takes place in the same ground the previous evening and pits Chelsea against the Brazilian side Fluminense.
Real Madrid are massive
One of the major confirmations this tournament has provided is that Madrid are, by a distance, the most in-demand team competing this summer in the U.S..
Madrid’s appeal has been helped by the presence of globally recognisable billboard names, like Kylian Mbappe, Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior, while giving fans a first glimpse of new coach Alonso and summer signing Trent Alexander-Arnold surely also increased excitement.
Madrid have played in four different cities — Miami (twice), Charlotte, Philadelphia and now New Jersey — and in every venue the attendance has hit over 60,000. For this game at MetLife it was 76,611.
They are the only club at the tournament to record these types of numbers and they are even more impressive when we consider that the ticket prices for their games have not tumbled down to low double figures in the way we have seen for other teams, including Chelsea (whose semi-final tickets were available for $13.40 on Saturday afternoon) or PSG, whose quarter-final against Bayern on Saturday was available for $44 earlier this week.
(Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu via Getty Images)
By contrast, tickets for Madrid games have not dropped below $100 at any stage for any game whenever The Athletic has been tracking prices on Ticketmaster. In that sense, Madrid advancing into the last four is a massive boost for FIFA, who have otherwise struggled to strike up demand.
What will be interesting is, if Madrid get to the final, whether this demand keeps up, or whether fans conclude they are happy to have seen Madrid once while they are in town rather than shelling out two or three times to see them at MetLife over the course of eight days.
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While the Chelsea semi-final against Fluminense dropped to $13.40 on Saturday lunchtime, the second semi-final featuring Madrid and PSG is still showing standard admission prices of $199.60. While this remains a steep ask for an afternoon kick-off on a weekday, it is a considerable drop from the pricing on Wednesday this week, when the cheapest standard admission price was $978.
Adam Crafton
Gonzalo continues his supreme form for Madrid
Cast your eyes across the seats at MetLife and the usual names are scattered on the back of Real Madrid shirts — Bellingham, Vinicius Jr, Mbappe. However, if things continue as they are, expect to see more shirts with the name and number “Gonzalo, 30” in the months and years to come.
An excellent first-time finish from Gonzalo was emblematic of his clinical summer in the United States, making it four goals and an assist across his five games for Madrid in the Club World Cup.
From a beautiful Guler cross, the manner in which Gonzalo opened his body up to caress the ball into the net was befitting of a seasoned striker than a player establishing himself in senior football.
Alonso has continued to give the 21-year-old an opportunity, and has been rewarded with every time he has named him on the team sheet.
“I knew a lot (about him) because I’ve followed Castilla a lot,” Alonso explained last week. “For me, it’s not so surprising what he’s doing. He reminds me of Raul in many ways.”
The comparisons with Raul will undoubtedly continue if Gonzalo continues to put in performances like he has done. It is not just his clinical finishing or his fox-in-the-box actions, but his ability to run the channels well and rough up defenders, or use his youthful exuberance by pressing opposition centre-backs into submission.
(Al Bello/Getty Images)
Gonzalo might be thankful for his chance to play so regularly this summer — owing to illness to Mbappe — but there is little doubt that he has taken his chance in the United States, not just against Dortmund but in every game he has played.
Mark Carey
This really felt like a Xabi Alonso team
Mark Carey
How much have Madrid earned by reaching semi-finals?
Real Madrid were already the club who generate the most money on planet Earth, according to the Deloitte Football Money League published in January 2025, and the Club World Cup takes them into another galaxy.
In the 2023-2024 season, Madrid became the first football team to record €1billion in revenue in a single season. Those figures were boosted by winning both the Champions League and La Liga, so they do not reflect an average campaign, but it was over €100million more than any of their European rivals.
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In the Club World Cup, according to workings by The Athletic’s finance expert Chris Weatherspoon, Madrid had already secured $48.4m by the end of the group stage, and reaching the semi-finals guarantees the club $82.53m.
If they advance to the final, they could then add a further $30m as runners-up, or $40m as winners. This would provide a return of $122.5m, therefore, if Madrid win the tournament.
Dortmund, meanwhile exit the competition with around $52m in their pocket, which is a handy return for wins over Mamelodi Sundowns, Ulsan HD and Monterrey, as well as a draw against Fluminense.
Adam Crafton
(Al Bello/Getty Images)
This news was originally published on this post .
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