Auckland were set to participate at the 18th edition of FIFA's global tournament, which is due to take place in February in the United Arab Emirates.
Champions League winners Chelsea and Copa Libertadores holders Palmeiras are the headline teams as UEFA and CONMEBOL's respective entries, though FIFA has been forced into a late change with Pirae nominated as the OFC's representative following Auckland's withdrawal.
FIFA announced the decision on Friday in a statement that said the "delayed reopening of the borders in New Zealand due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic" as well as the reintroduction of quarantine protocols in the country had forced Auckland to "reluctantly withdraw".
Monterrey, Al Hilal, Al Ahly, as well as UAE champions, Al Jazira, make up the rest of the entrants for the tournament, which Bayern Munich won last season.
The annual tournament featuring the champions of six global confederations was originally scheduled for Japan in 2021, but COVID-19 concerns within the country forced the competition to be moved to the UAE last October.
The New Zealand club had been nominated as the Oceania Football Confederation's (OFC) representative for the tournament in Qatar, which is scheduled to begin on February 1.
However, the quarantine measures in place in New Zealand in relation to the coronavirus pandemic have led Auckland to pull out.
They had been set to face Al-Duhail in the opening game but that contest will now not take place.
A FIFA statement read: "FIFA has today [Friday] been informed by Auckland City FC that, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and related quarantine measures required by the New Zealand authorities, the club will be unable to participate in the FIFA Club World Cup 2020.
"Despite FIFA's regular exchanges with the club, New Zealand Football and the OFC in recent days, the requirements of the New Zealand authorities in relation to isolation and quarantine go beyond FIFA's remit and, therefore, it was not possible to reach a solution.
"FIFA together with the Qatari authorities, will implement a comprehensive medical and security protocol providing the safeguards required to protect the health and safety of everyone involved in the competition.
"Following the withdrawal of Auckland City, the FIFA Club World Cup 2020 will be contested by Al-Duhail SC, Al Ahly SC, FC Bayern Munich, Ulsan Hyundai FC, Tigres UANL and the winners of the CONMEBOL Libertadores final scheduled for 30 January.
"The first-round match will no longer take place and Al-Duhail SC will begin the competition in the second round. The competition format remains otherwise unchanged.
"The draw to finalise the pairings will take place in Zurich on 19 January at 16:00 CET."
Bartomeu made the announcement on Tuesday in a speech confirming he and Barca's board of directors are resigning.
"We accept entry into a European Super League of football clubs," he said. "This acceptance will have to be ratified by the next assembly. We have also approved the format of the new Club World Cup.
"The European Super League will make it so the club can remain being one of the members."
A report from Sky Sports last week claimed Liverpool and Manchester United were leading talks around the prospect of a new FIFA-backed tournament featuring the world's biggest clubs.
It was claimed more than a dozen teams from England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain were in negotiations to become founder members of a possible European Premier League backed by $6billion (£4.6billion) of funding.
Bartomeu's comments made it clear that Barca are one such club to have been approached to join the proposed competition, which could start as early as 2022 and comprise home and away fixtures between 18 teams.
Any final decision would have to be ratified by a vote held by the next Barca president and board of directors.
In his speech, Bartomeu did not state whether Barca's involvement in any new such competition would lead to them withdrawing from LaLiga or the Champions League.
The new Club World Cup was scheduled to begin next year, in place of the traditional pre-World Cup tournament, the Confederations Cup, with FIFA expanding the tournament to 24 teams and China selected as host.
The coronavirus pandemic means the event is likely to be pushed back until at least 2022, however.
Bartomeu's admission that Barca have accepted the plans for the new tournament is at odds with the view of the European Club Association (ECA), which last year produced a letter insisting "no ECA clubs would take part".
Writing on Twitter on Tuesday after Bartomeu's resignation speech, LaLiga president Javier Tebas said: "Unlucky Bartomeu, announcing on the final day participation in a phantom competition that would be the ruin of Barcelona, and ratifies his ignorance in the football industry.
"A sad end for a president who had success and, in the end, errors."
Captain Benzema sustained a leg injury in last week's 2-0 LaLiga win over Valencia and the striker subsequently missed Sunday's shock 1-0 loss at Real Mallorca.
Goalkeeper Courtois suffered a groin strain during the warm-up of that defeat to Mallorca, which leaves Madrid trailing leaders Barcelona by eight points.
Neither player travelled with the Madrid squad to Moroccan capital Rabat on Monday, while Eder Militao, Lucas Vazquez, Ferland Mendy and Eden Hazard were also absent.
Key men Benzema and Courtois still have a chance of being fit for Saturday's final against either Flamengo or Al Hilal, should Madrid overcome Egyptian side Al Ahly.
Los Blancos, who have won the competition four times in the past eight seasons, also have a Champions League last-16 first-leg tie at Liverpool in a fortnight.
The sport has been halted in a bid to slow the spread of the virus, which has over 345,000 confirmed cases and almost 15,000 deaths worldwide.
Europe's top five leagues have been suspended, while Euro 2020 and the 2020 Copa America have been pushed back 12 months.
Infantino sees the pause in play as an opportunity to assess the future of the game, though.
Leading managers - most notably Jurgen Klopp - have long bemoaned a packed scheduled, and the FIFA chief has highlighted the possibility of cutting back on some competitions.
"Perhaps we can reform football by taking a step backwards," Infantino told Gazzetta dello Sport.
"[There would be] fewer but more interesting competitions, maybe fewer teams but for a better balance, fewer but more competitive matches to preserve players' health."
Meanwhile, Infantino confirmed FIFA's revamped 24-team Club World Cup - initially set for 2021 - would have to be rescheduled due to the changing international calendar.
"We will have to move the Club World Cup," he acknowledged. "We will see if the new format will have its first edition in 2021, 2022 or 2023."
Football's immediate focus is on completing ongoing club campaigns.
Infantino insists all leagues will follow the World Health Organisation's (WHO) guidance, and FIFA is looking at altering contracts set to expire in June to allow for the potential prolongment of the season.
"We will start again when there is no longer any risk to health," he said. "Nothing says that will be in April or May.
"Federations and leagues are ready to follow WHO recommendations.
"We are thinking of modifying the statutes of contracts and making temporary derogations to extend their duration, initially scheduled until June 30."
The coronavirus pandemic has brought the majority of the football world to a standstill as governments across the globe attempt to tackle the outbreak of COVID-19, with close to one million confirmed cases across the world and over 52,000 people having died after testing positive for the virus.
Last week, FIFA chief Infantino conducted an interview with La Gazetta dello Sport in which he pondered the possibility of reforming football with fewer competitions to try to cope with the disruption to the calendar.
Addressing the 72nd Ordinary CONMEBOL Congress during a speech via videolink, Infantino stressed the message that tackling the coronavirus crisis remains the most pressing concern.
"Football is not the most important thing, health comes first and should remain our priority until this sickness has been defeated," he said.
"The world is facing new challenges and we have to stay together and work as a team. This is the lesson that football can give: to work as a team.
"Tomorrow we all would like to see football again, but we don't know when we will be able to resume playing and no one around the world knows when we will be able to play like before.
"It is very important that football follows the instructions of the health authorities and governments, and it is very important that football gives a good example, because it's clear that no match is more important than a human life.
"This we need to clearly have in our minds, while at the same time... working with confidence and thinking positively towards the future.
"We have to look ahead and can't remain passive as [the coronavirus] will affect us. Both our world and our sport will be different once we return to normality.
"It is our responsibility as football administrators, first of all to ensure football can survive and secondly move forward once again. This is not only our responsibility but also our obligation."
The football governing body outlined their brief proposals for the new version of the tournament – currently contested annually by seven sides – at a news conference on Friday.
Plans were approved at a FIFA Council meeting earlier in the day to push on with the expanded competition, which will be held once every four years.
FIFA also announced the introduction of a Women's Club World Cup, while a 'World Series' tournament will be held by countries from different continents every other year.
However, the global union for professional football players has hit out at the announcement, claiming there had been no dialogue with FIFA prior to the competitions being ratified.
"FIFPRO took note with surprise of today's decisions by the FIFA Council concerning the international match calendars for men's and women's football that could have serious consequences for and aggravate pressure on the welfare and employment of players," the statement read.
"Despite an understanding FIFPRO reached with FIFA last week that a joint negotiation of the international match calendar would take place before the FIFA Congress in March 2023, these decisions were taken unilaterally without seriously consulting, let alone agreeing, with the players.
"The announcements today of a new format for the Club World Cup as of 2025, new principles for the Men's and Women's IMC [international match calendar] post-2024 and 2023 respectively, including the 'rolling over' of the current women's IMC into 2024-25 which will cause severe congestion during the Olympic competition year, have created new conditions, that further increase pressure on player workload and their job.
"Once again, decisions to scale competitions without implementing appropriate safeguards are short-sighted and pay no attention to players' health and performance.
"This decision once more shows that key stakeholders of the game are not being appropriately involved in decision making of football, even when it concerns the core of their fundamental rights."
It was confirmed on Friday that Morocco will host the 2023 Club World Cup in February, when European champions Real Madrid will be seeking a record-extending fifth title.
FIFA's decision to stage a 32-team Club World Cup in the United States next year has attracted fierce criticism from pundits and players, with many believing it will exacerbate issues arising from fixture congestion.
Earlier this week, Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti suggested the European champions could boycott the tournament, only for the club to quickly confirm their participation in a statement.
Ahead of last year's seven-team Club World Cup, Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva said the expansion of the football calendar would lead to matches losing "energy and intensity".
When FIFA's Club World Cup plans were finalised last year, FIFPRO threatened legal action and said world football's governing body had demonstrated "a lack of consideration for the mental and physical health of players, as well as a disregard for their personal and family lives."
FIFPRO has now launched a claim against FIFA at the Brussels court of commerce.
In a statement released on Thursday, the union said: "FIFPRO Europe member unions have today submitted a legal claim against FIFA, challenging the legality of FIFA's decisions to unilaterally set the international match calendar and, in particular, the decision to create and schedule the FIFA Club World Cup 2025.
"Player unions believe that these decisions violate the rights of players and their unions under the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights while also potentially violating EU competition law."
Madrid and City are among 12 European clubs to have booked a spot at the first 32-team Club World Cup, due to their recent Champions League successes.
Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain, Inter and Juventus will also feature, with most qualifiers being determined by a FIFA ranking system that awards points for victories in the Champions League.
The Sounders beat Pumas UNAM 3-0 at Lumen Field on Wednesday to complete a 5-2 aggregate triumph and finally deliver a first Champions League title for MLS.
Seattle are the league's third CONCACAF champions but first in the Champions League era after a series of heartbreaks for rival clubs.
Two goals from Raul Ruidiaz and a late clincher from captain Nicolas Lodeiro sparked scenes of mass celebration in front of a raucous, record crowd of over 68,741.
Garth Lagerwey, the Sounders' general manager, gave Extratime his assessment: "Immortality. You get into sports for stuff people can never take away.
"This will be written down, it will be there forever. Hopefully it's the first of many."
Real Salt Lake, CF Montreal, Toronto FC and Los Angeles FC had each previously fallen at this final hurdle.
Now, for MLS, Lagerwey says, Seattle are "the symbol, we're the tip of the spear, we pushed through, we finally did it, we vanquished the demons".
"But everybody's welcome," he added. "We want a crowded mountaintop up here. We don't want to be up here by ourselves."
Playing just hours after Madrid had completed an epic semi-final fightback against Manchester City in UEFA's Champions League, Lagerwey could not help consider a Club World Cup clash with a European giant.
"We're going to play against Real Madrid or Liverpool in a real game for a trophy," he said, with Seattle's place in the tournament secure. "I feel like a little kid. This is the stuff you dream of."
The Sounders had already won two MLS Cups, a Supporters' Shield and four U.S. Open Cups, but this victory takes the club to another level entirely.
"I think we're going to become a global club now," the GM added.
"I've got to think my phone's got to start ringing once some people see what our fanbase, our building... it's as good a soccer environment as anywhere in the world. It just is. This is a pretty special place."
City face the Brazilian winners of the Copa Libertadores, South America’s equivalent of the Champions League, in Saudi Arabia on Friday for the global title.
Manager Guardiola admits City have not faced the like of Fluminense before but is familiar with their style having grown up watching and admiring some of the great Brazil sides.
The Spaniard told reporters at a press conference: “We have to be resilient because of the way they play – they will demand a lot of effort – and try to be aware and precise with the ball.
“The way they play, we’ve never faced, never. We will have to impose our rhythm and our positional game as best as possible and do a good performance, because we know without a good performance and being resilient in the bad moments it will be so difficult to win the final.
“They play a typical Brazil style from the 70s, 80s, early 90s – until 1994, when they won the World Cup in the United States.
“I love it. I love the build-up. I love how they associate between each other, the respect (they have) all of the time for the ball.
“I know perfectly the team we are going to play and I have huge respect for the essence of Brazilian football.
“When I was a little boy, not even a teenager, I listened to my dad or my people (talk about) the way that Brazil had success with all previous generations. I saw it for many, many years.”
Champions League winners City secured their place in this week’s showpiece at Jeddah’s King Abdullah Sports City with a comfortable 3-0 win over Japanese side Urawa Red Diamonds on Tuesday.
Erling Haaland will again be missing and has now officially been pulled out of City’s squad for the tournament after missing their last four competitive games with a foot injury.
Kevin De Bruyne and Jeremy Doku, who were both training with the squad as they step up their returns to fitness, will also not feature but City remain firm favourites.
Guardiola said: “The players, of course, are ready. They know how important it is and what a pleasure it is to be here.”
Bundesliga champions Bayern confirmed Muller's absence on Thursday, just hours before they were due to face the Mexican side at the Education City Stadium in Qatar.
Muller is the latest player in Bayern's squad to return a positive test for COVID-19, with Javi Martinez and Leon Goretzka both having not travelled.
The 31-year-old has isolated and, upon returning to Munich, will immediately quarantine. There were no further positive tests recorded in Bayern's squad.
Bayern are also without Jerome Boateng against Tigres after he returned to Germany following the death of his ex-girlfriend.
Robert Lewandowski scored twice as Bayern defeat Al Ahly 2-0 in Monday's semi-final to book their fixture with Tigres.
After making his debut in June 2020, Bayern teenager Musiala has become a regular fixture in the Bundesliga champions' first-team squad, featuring in 15 games and scoring three goals this season.
The 17-year-old switched from Chelsea's youth academy to Bayern in July 2019 - aged 16 - before becoming Bayern's youngest ever senior player and their youngest goalscorer.
Born in Stuttgart to a German mother and an English-Nigerian father, Musiala moved to London aged seven and represented England from Under-15 to U21 levels, as well as Germany U16s.
Although he last played for England against Albania in November 2020, Musiala remains eligible for both nations and it has been reported that a tug-of-war has been ongoing for some time.
The highly rated youngster has reportedly been contacted by England manager Gareth Southgate and Germany head coach Joachim Low, but Ballack insisted Musiala should only play for Die Mannschaft if he is fully committed.
"We talk about the German national team. It should consist of players that meet the requirements and really want to play for this team," Ballack, who earned 98 caps for Germany, told Stats Perform News.
"It also needs to meet the rules and everything else needs to be decided from the national coach."
