Iqraam Rayners celebrates scoring Mamelodi Sundowns' winning goal in their 2025 Fifa Club World Cup Group F victory against Ulsan HD at Inter & Co Stadium in Orlando, Florida on Tuesday.
Image: Reuters/Amanda Perobelli

Mamelodi Sundowns “released a lot of energy in the right way” to edge Ulsan HD 1-0 and get their 2025 Fifa Club World Cup campaign off to the best possible start at Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando, Florida on Tuesday night.

Iqraam Rayners’ 36th-minute strike settled a match delayed for 55 minutes by a storm from a 6pm kickoff to just before 7pm (1am on Wednesday SA time).

Downs registered their first Club World Cup win in their second participation, the first for an African team in the new 32-team format. They went top of Group F after Borussia Dortmund and Fluminense drew the earlier game.

After losing the Caf Champions League final 3-2 on aggregate to Pyramids FC last month, the victory will lift Downs’ spirits immensely, though they have tough assignments coming against Borussia at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati on Saturday (6pm SA time) and Fluminense at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on June 25 (9pm).

“We are very happy to fulfil our dream and reach our objective by winning a match in the new format of the Club World Cup,” Cardoso said.

“It’s not easy to achieve victories. It was a long way until this moment. I think today we released a lot of energy, in the right way, before, during and after [the game].

“We lived the right emotions. The team found the right place to start the match. We prepared it very well tactically and strategically.

“Then we found the commitment from everybody that was important for us to win it, playing to the level of preparation we had.”

Downs dominated the game, enjoying 70% possession and the balance of chances, though did have to clear opportunities off the line twice against the South Korean champions.

Rayners had two other strikes disallowed by VAR checks.

“It was clear we had a wonderful first half. It was important we kept to the pace and the gameplan so we could score the second and [it was only through] the little details and matter of centimetres we could not do it.

“Obviously, as time goes by, having a margin of 1-0 normally it’s our intention to preserve the result, so in the last 15 minutes we didn’t get [forward] as much as we would have liked.

“But [overall] we had the chances and we are very happy with the start to the tournament.”

Cardoso said the delay had positives and negatives.

“It gave us an opportunity to sit with the team and discuss better the line-up of the opponents, which had come as a bit of a surprise because usually they build up with the three players, having the fullbacks lower, in a back four.

“But today they had a back five. So we had the time to make the corrections, settle on the game and adjust the plan.

“What was also important was the emotions because the boys felt the stadium [in the two warm-ups] so it was like we were acquainted and re-energised for the beginning of the game.”

Borussia’s performance against Fluminense was low intensity in a match played in noon heat — some matches are at midday for peak time European TV audiences — in New Jersey, but Cardoso is under no illusions Downs’ next two games won’t be their toughest.

“I didn’t see the game. My assistants did. I was finalising the points for the [prematch] meeting with my players and focused on this game [against Ulsan].

“I heard the [Borussia] game was not intense. There are questions too about whether our game was very intense.

“I am curious to see because as much as we want, the heat and conditions take out the possibility to perform physically.

 “It’s very important that after this victory we can make the next two games competitive because we are going to play against the best ones now. Fantastic. We are so keen for it.”