Doha – Real Madrid crushed Mexico’s Pachuca 3-0 to lift the Intercontinental Cup in Doha on Wednesday.
Mbappe opened the scoring in the 37th minute, before Rodrigo doubled the lead for Real Madrid at the start of the second half. Vinicius secured a comfortable victory for the Spanish and European champions with a late penalty kick.
French striker Mbappe returned to the Real Madrid squad in Doha after missing Saturday’s 3-3 draw with Rayo Vallecano due to a hamstring injury he suffered during the victory over Atalanta in the Champions League last week.
Mbappe scored from close range to open the scoring after great play from Vinicius Junior, who had won the FIFA Player of the Year award the previous day after missing out on the Ballon d’Or.
Former West Brom and Newcastle striker Salomon Rondon led the charge for Pachuca, the CONCACAF Champions’ Cup winners, but never really looked capable of causing an upset and Rodrigo’s impressive shot from the edge of the box gave Real Madrid complete control.
It was allowed to stand after the referee consulted the pitch monitor even though Jude Bellingham was offside and appeared to be interfering with the goalkeeper’s line of sight.
Vinicius added the third goal from a penalty kick six minutes before the end after a VAR review after Lucas Vazquez was obstructed inside the Pachuca penalty area.
Real Madrid midfielder Fede Valverde told Spanish television channel Telecinco, “We knew that after a long journey and playing only one match, it would be difficult. We struggled at the beginning, but we adapted well.”
This is Real Madrid’s second title this season after winning the European Super Cup over Atalanta in August.
Carlo Ancelotti won his 15th title as Real Madrid coach, surpassing Miguel Munoz for the most in the club’s history.
“I’m very happy, very happy. It’s a success. This is more than anyone else,” Ancelotti said.
This was the first edition of the Intercontinental Cup supported by FIFA, which generally maintains the previous format of the Club World Cup and features the champions of the six continents.
The latter is expanded to 32 teams in 2025, and will now be played every four years. A previous edition of the Intercontinental Cup was held from 1960 to 2004 and featured the European and South American champions.
Real Madrid won this competition three times and then lifted the Club World Cup on a record five occasions.
They are scheduled to play Pachuca again in next year’s Club World Cup in the United States, in addition to a Al Hilal side that includes Neymar and Red Bull Salzburg.
Real Madrid hosts Sevilla in the Spanish League on Sunday in its last match of the year. They will return to the Middle East in early January to participate in the four-team Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia.