River Plate are competing at their third Club World Cup, beaten by Barcelona in the final a decade ago, before embarrassingly losing to Al Ain in the semi-finals three years later.
As for Urawa Red Diamonds, this'll be their fourth appearance at the tournament, winning four of eight Club World Cup matches to date, albeit they've never gone further than the semi-finals.
River Plate vs Urawa Red Diamonds preview
Are River Plate poised to make a deep run at this summer's Club World Cup? La Banda are four-times Copa Libertadores winners, only three clubs can boast more, albeit the most-recent of these came in 2018, defeated in the final the following year. El Más Grande were dumped out of this year's Argentine Primera División final stage at the quarter-final stages by eventual winners Platense on penalties last month, so do not travel stateside with confidence sky-high.
Nevertheless, River's optimism comes from the fact that Marcelo Gallardo is back in charge. During his first stint as manager, he won 14 major honours, including two Copa Libertadores titles, and was re-appointed last August, following an unsuccessful stint with Al-Ittihad in Saudi Arabia. So, can Gallardo lead his club to an opening match victory at Lumen Field?
As for Urawa Red Diamonds, they enjoyed their third AFC Champions League triumph in 2023, defeating fellow-Club World Cup participants Al-Hilal 2-1 on aggregate in that final. Despite their success on the continent, the Red Devils have only ever been champions of Japan on five occasions, their most-recent J.League title coming in 2006. 21 matches into this campaign, Maciej Skorża's side sit third, seven points adrift leaders Kashima Antlers, having finished down in 13th last year.
So, this Urawa Reds team are a side in transition, certainly not at the peak of their powers, making them massive underdogs to reach the knockout stages. Internazionale and Monterrey are the other two teams in an intriguing Group E, but most expected River Plate to prevail in Seattle on Tuesday.
River Plate vs Urawa Red Diamonds head-to-head record
These two clubs have never previously met.
River Plate team news
Marcelo Gallardo is without Paulo Díaz, Leandro González Pírez, Gonzalo Montiel, Maximiliano Meza and Agustín Ruberto due to injury, but the majority of his key stars are ready to go.
Defenders Germán Pezzella, Lucas Martínez Quarta and Marcos Acuña all have high-level European expirence, while Sebastián Driussi, who arrived from Austin for $10 million in January, will be looking to add to his six goals for the club, leading the line.
River Plate predicted lineup vs Urawa Red Diamonds: (4-3-3): Armani; Bustos, Martínez Quarta, Pezzella, Acuña; Pérez, Castaño, Fernández; Mastantuono, Colidio, Driussi.
River Plate player to watch vs Urawa Red Diamonds
17 year old Franco Mastantuono is unquestionably this team's star. By coming off the bench for Argentina against Chile last week, he became la Albiceleste's youngest-ever player, smashing Adolfo Heisinger's record that had stood for 109 years. For River Plate, Mastantuono has scored ten times in 61 appearances, already securing a €45 million move to Real Madrid, Bernabéu-bound after this tournament.
Urawa Red Diamonds team news
Maciej Skorża's squad is largely domestic-based; Norwegian centre-back Marius Høibråten, Swedish midfielder Samuel Gustafson and Brazilian trio Danilo Boza, Matheus Sávio and Thiago Santana are their only overseas players.
Urawa Red Diamonds predicted lineup vs River Plate: (4-2-3-1): Nishikawa; Ishihara, Danilo Boza, Høibråten, Ogiwara; Gustafson, Yasui, Matheus Sávio, Kaneko, Watanabe; Matsuo.
Urawa Red Diamonds player to watch vs River Plate
Winger Ryōma Watanabe is likely to be Urawa Reds' main goal threat, having scored six J League goals so far in 2025, most-recently on target in defeat at Nagoya Grampus last month.
River Plate vs Urawa Red Diamonds prediction
We are confidently backing River Plate to pick up three points in the Pacific Northwest, not expecting very much from the Japanese outfit this summer: River Plate 2-0 Urawa Red Diamonds.
River Plate vs Urawa Red Diamonds FAQs - FIFA Club World Cup
How to watch River Plate vs Urawa Red Diamonds FIFA Club World Cup game on TV channel?
River Plate vs Urawa Red Diamonds FIFA Club World Cup game will be available on the following TV channels;
- UK: DAZN UK
- USA: DAZN USA.
- Canada: DAZN Canada
How to watch River Plate vs Urawa Red Diamonds FIFA Club World Cup game on live streaming?
River Plate vs Urawa Red Diamonds FIFA Club World Cup game will be available on the following streaming services;
- UK: DAZN UK
- USA: DAZN USA.
- Canada: DAZN Canada
What is the date and kick-off time for River Plate vs Urawa Red Diamonds in the FIFA Club World Cup?
River Plate vs Urawa Red Diamonds takes place on Tuesday 17 June 2025, with kick off at 20:00 (BST), 15:00 (EDT) & 12:00 (PDT).