Ahead of their 2025 FIFA Club World Cup debut across the Hudson River in New Jersey, fans of Brazilian giant Palmeiras gathered in New York City’s Times Square.
Video shows what must be thousands of green-clad football fans singing and dancing in the streets of the city – in spite of the cloudy weather.
Fans of the three-time Copa Libertadores winners will crowd Metlife Stadium for their first match of this expanded tournament on Sunday evening.
Other images showed the moment that fans from another Club World Cup side – Esperance arrived at the same scene. Eyewitnesses said that the interaction between the two groups of fans was peaceful.
Fans from the Tunisian side are set to watch their team play just down the road at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on Monday.
Palmeiras, who is in Group A alongside Al Ahly and Inter Miami, will take on Porto in their first match at 6:00pm ET.
Thousands of Palmeiras fans gathered in Times Square ahead of the Club World Cup
At one point, fans of Tunisian side Esperance peacefully joined in the celebration
Palmeiras will kick their tournament off at Metlife Stadium on Sunday against Porto
Inter Miami and Al Ahly kicked off the tournament at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Saturday night, where an initially sparse crowd eventually filled in to hit an attendance of 60,000.
The scoreline did not match the occasion as the two teams played to a 0-0 draw.
Porto-Palmeiras serves as the third match of the day for the Club World Cup in the second day of competition.
Sunday begins with Bayern Munich facing Auckland City at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati at Noon ET.
Following that is the highly anticipated matchup between UEFA Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid at 3:00pm ET from the Rose Bowl in greater Los Angeles.
After the Palmeiras game, the nightcap will feature another Brazilian side as Botafogo travel to Lumen Field in Seattle for a matchup against MLS side Seattle Sounders at 10:00pm ET.
