Club World Cup: Botafogo topples PSG, Inter Miami beats Porto

Botafogo, reigning champions of the Copa Libertadores, beat Paris Saint-Germain, reigning Champions League winners, while Inter Miami beat Porto, one of Portugal's biggest clubs.

In an epic day of the 2025 Club World Cup, Leo Messi's Inter Miami made history by becoming the first Concacaf team to beat a UEFA club in an official tournament. In turn, in the last match of the day, Botafogo broke a 13-year streak that the reigning Copa Libertadores champion losing to the Champions League winner after Corinthias' last victory over Chelsea in 2013.

Both matches undoubtedly marked a day that also saw Palmeiras beat Egyptian side Al-Ahly 2-0 and Atlético Madrid beat the Seattle Sounders 3-1.

Igor Jesus, Savarino and Barboza dethrone "best team in the world"

PSG, heavy favorites to win the Club World Cup, were thrashed by a rebellious, fighting and inspired Botafogo side, which came out to make history.

Although it would be extremely unfair to single out such a perfect defensive performance by the Brazilian team, the three names from the "Fogao" that stand out are Alexander Barboza, defensive leader of the Copa Libertadores champions; Jefferson Savarino, the team's No. 10, and Igor Jesus, the goalscorer of the match who became a living nightmare for the Parisian back line.

In fact, Savarino and Igor Jesus were in charge of scoring the only goal of the match in the 36th minute of the first half. A deep pass from the Venezuelan midfielder left the Brazilian striker one-on-one, who powerfully took the ball around the world and slotted the ball past Italian goalkeeper Donnarumma.

Although PSG dominated possession and played almost the entire match in Botafogo's half, the Brazilian club, coached by Renato Paiva, allowed only two shots on goal in 90 minutes. The Brazilians managed four shots, doubling a team that subdued territorially, but could barely breach a concrete wall that stood firm from the first moment of the match until the final whistle.

Messi makes history with Inter Miami

In the match between Inter Miami and Porto, the spotlight was on Leo Messi, who, despite being injured and 37 years old, dominated the game from the first moment of the match. He nearly had an assist to teammate Luis Suárez in the opening minutes, though his shot ultimately missed.

Surprisingly, Inter Miami, which had struggled in the opener against Al Ahly, came out very differently against Porto. Busquets and Venezuelan midfielder Telasco Segovia, one of the best players on the field, were able to pass in the midfield to organize, bring the team together and feed Messi who played the role of creator. The rest of the players for the American club were in charge of staying applied and focused throughout the 90 minutes, keeping a Porto team at bay that looked uncomfortable and overpowered.

Despite this, the Portuguese club managed to take the lead after eight minutes, thanks to a goal by Spaniard Samu Aghehowa through the penalty kick. However, this did not discourage Inter Miami, who played the match like a real final, deserving the victory for a long time.

In the second half, determined to take Porto through the middle, it was Segovia, after a great play put together by Busquets, Allende and Marcelo Weigandt, who scored the equalizer with a powerful shot that went into the opponent's corner.

Then, minutes later, Messi himself added to his legend, scoring a beautiful free kick that meant the first victory for a Concacaf club against a UEFA team.

The Argentine star, chosen as the man of the match, did not hide his emotion after Inter Miami's victory and acknowledged that, at 37 years of age, he knows that he is playing some of his last games as a professional and is trying to enjoy them to the fullest.