Salzburg misses round of 16: Drama in the club World Cup against Al-Hilal!

Salzburg misses round of 16: Drama in the club World Cup against Al-Hilal!

Washington D.C., USA - On June 23, 2025, Red Bull Salzburg played in the club world championship against Al-Hilal and separated with a 0-0 draw. This division of points lets Salzburg miss the premature rise to the round of 16, since they now have to score in the last group game against Real Madrid. Over 16,000 spectators were in Washington D.C. present where the temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius were.

Salzburg coach Thomas Letsch made two changes before the game: Sumaila Diabate replaced the injured Valentin Sulzbacher, while Karim Onisiwo came into play for Petar Ratkov. Al-Hilal was a tone over long distances of the game, but initially had difficulty converting the superiority into goals.

game impressions and opportunities

The first shot on the goal came in the 3. minute through Joao Cancelo, who missed the destination. Shortly afterwards, Onisiwo had the opportunity to 1-0 in the 9th minute, but his volley was parried by Al-Hilal-Goalie Bono. Salzburg also found opportunities in the second half; John Mellberg failed after a corner from a short distance from Bono (48th minute). Dorgeles Nene had an margin only seconds later, which was saved on the line by Kalidou Koulibaly.

al-Hilal increasingly took over the initiative, but the Salzburg Gate remained undefeated until the end. In the 55th minute, Zawieschitzky refused to take a shot from Cancelo, and Malcom narrowly moved in the 57th minute. Salzburg only got into play better in the final phase and had several options, but the ball just didn't want to go online. "Joker" let the best opportunity to be covered in the 83rd minute when his shot scored past the long corner.

outlook and consequences

The last group round takes place on Friday night. In order to maintain the chance of moving into the round of 16, Salzburg needs a victory against Real Madrid. In addition, Al-Hilal has to win against Pachuca with at least two goals difference, so Salzburg remains the opportunity to climb into the knockout phase. After this matchday, Salzburg is bleed -out behind Real Madrid at group rank.

The tie unfolds its importance against the background of a mixed performance of Salzburg, the actions of which were often over -hasty and imprecise. The number of spectators with 16.167 in the Audi Field underlines the high interest in the club World Cup and the direct competitor in the tournament. [Krone] reports that the game was led by referee Wilton Pereira Sampaio from Brazil