Borussia Dortmund celebrated its first win at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup in front of 14,006 spectators at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati. After a 4-3 (3-1) victory over the Mamelodi Sundowns, the Bundesliga club has excellent prospects of reaching the round of 16.
The German team celebrated its first victory at the Club World Cup in a rather stifling heat. The team set a course to get out of the group.
BVB could not afford to lose this match to their best rivals. The South Africans also tried to create pressure and even took the lead. In the 11th minute, Lucas Ribeiro shocked the Black and Yellows after a solo run through the halfway line. Felix Nmecha equalised in the 16th minute after a mistake by Sundowns goalkeeper Ronwen Williams.
Sir Girassi (34) and Bellingham (45) quickly made it a comfortable score in the second half. Juliso Mudau scored an own goal in the 59th minute to give BVB a seemingly safe 4-1 lead. Shortly afterwards, Ikraam Reijners (62) reduced the deficit, and a goal from Lebo Motiba (90) made the final phase even more exciting.
Gross mistakes on both sides
Niko Kovac, the German coach, wanted his team to have more possession. Fighting in the centre of the pitch would have taken too much energy, and the coach’s plan didn’t work at first.
The South Africans, who beat Ulsan HD from South Korea 1-0 in the first match, turned the tide early on and combined well. This impressed the Dormunds, whose defence looked very poor when they conceded a goal.
Ribeiro was allowed to run through the halfway line with the ball in his feet and hit the net with little difficulty. Goalkeeper Williams had no problem punching the ball into Nmechi’s feet, allowing BVB to equalise shortly afterwards, but that was it. The game continued to be played at a moderate pace, and Tashrik Matthews could have put the underdogs back in front, but goalkeeper Gregor Kobel saved his shot.
The heat in Cincinnati
During the break, the Dortmund coaches handed out wet towels to their players, who put them on their shoulders and heads. The substitutes were not on the bench as usual, but in the dressing room. In the stands, the spectators took advantage of the many free seats to sit in the shade rather than in the sun. Kovac, on the other hand, stood bravely in his coaching area throughout the match.
Dortmund struggled more than they had hoped, especially in defence and midfield, where they repeatedly made mistakes in coordination. At the same time, the South Africans were unable to take advantage of this. Ulsan HD, who are one of the outsiders in the 32-team FIFA Club World Cup, will be Dortmund’s last opponents at the end of the group stage on Wednesday.
Earlier, UEFA named the best goal of the UEFA Champions League in the 2024/25 season.
