FIFA opens special transfer window for Sundowns, Al Ahly, Wydad & Esperance

The four African teams set for Club World Cup. Photo credit: FIFA

A special transfer window will open for four prominent African clubs – Mamelodi Sundowns, Wydad AC, Esperance of Tunisia, and Al Ahly of Egypt – in just over a week.

This opportunity allows the African giants to register new players between June 1 and June 10, ahead of the FIFA Club World Cup in the USA, scheduled from June 14 to July 13, 2025.

This upcoming tournament marks a significant milestone as it will be the first time four African teams participate in the FIFA Club World Cup.

For clubs like Sundowns, this special transfer window offers a crucial advantage. Traditionally, South African PSL clubs begin registering new players on July 1, with the transfer window typically closing by the end of August, though it's recently been extended to mid-September.

On Wednesday FIFA confirmed that all participating clubs in the upcoming Club World Cup will benefit from an "exceptional" transfer window.

"All 20 FIFA Member Associations whose clubs will participate in the FIFA Club World Cup have confirmed the opening of an exceptional transfer window from 1 to 10 June," FIFA announced.

"In line with the Regulations for the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 and the relevant amendments to the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, all 20 Member Associations whose clubs will participate in FIFA’s groundbreaking competition have confirmed the opening of an exceptional registration window from 1 to 10 June for all their affiliated clubs to allow new players signed to compete in the tournament. The deadline for the final player list has been set as 10 June 2025, allowing each participating club to bring any new players signed in this special window to the United States.

"The Member Associations concerned are located in: Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea Republic, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and the United States.

"The Regulations for the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, which were approved by the FIFA Council in October 2024, seek to address technicalities and equalise differences in registration periods and domestic-season timings between participating clubs to the greatest extent possible, while affording flexibility to the Member Associations in question."

FIFA added: "Participating clubs will also be able to replace and add players during a restricted in-competition period from 27 June to 3 July 2025 within a set limit and according to specific limitations, including the fact that a “standard” registration window must be open for the club at the time. The objective is to encourage clubs and players whose contracts are expiring to find an appropriate solution to facilitate the players’ participation. This will ensure that the best players will be playing, allowing clubs to add new recruits even during the tournament."

The FIFA Club World Cup will feature a total of 63 matches played across 11 cities. Orlando is the only city hosting games at two venues, with the final set to be held at MetLife Stadium in New York, New Jersey.