Real Madrid began their Club World Cup campaign with a 1-1 draw against Al-Hilal in Miami, with Trent Alexander-Arnold making his debut. Federico Valverde missed a stoppage-time penalty as the European champions failed to secure victory in their Group H opener at the Hard Rock Stadium.
Xabi Alonso, the new coach, said he was not frustrated despite the result. "We don't expect the team to work perfectly on the first day," he said. "We weren't frustrated. We need to do things differently, to correct a few details. We saw a good reaction in the second half. It has only been nine days and three training sessions."
Al-Hilal had the better early chances, with Sergej Milinkovic-Savic drawing a save from Thibaut Courtois and Marcos Leonardo deflecting a shot wide. Vinícius Júnior was booked for evading a challenge from Kalidou Koulibaly. Madrid took the lead after 34 minutes when Alexander-Arnold won a challenge in his own box, and the ball was worked to Rodrygo, whose cross was turned in by Gonzalo García. However, Al-Hilal equalised seven minutes later when Raul Asencio conceded a penalty, converted by Rúben Neves.
After the interval, Arda Guler hit the bar and García forced a save from Yassine Bounou. Jude Bellingham showed drive as Madrid dominated possession, but they could not find a winner. Valverde missed a penalty in the 92nd minute after a dubious award.
Kylian Mbappé was absent with a fever. The club announced 60,000 tickets had been sold for the 65,000-capacity stadium. Before kick-off, FIFA revived its No To Racism messaging, which was seen as a response to criticism over its watered-down "Football Unites The World" slogan.
