They successfully defended their title (their third consecutive) after defeating Al Ain 4–1 in the final.

With the win, they broke the tie with their club rivals Barcelona to become the outright record winners of the competition.

[6] The FIFA Executive Committee was to select the hosts at their meeting in Morocco in December 2014,[7] but the final decision was delayed until the FIFA Executive Committee meetings on 19–20 March 2015.

[8] The following countries expressed an interest in bidding to host the tournament:[9] The FIFA Executive Committee officially confirmed the United Arab Emirates as hosts of the 2017 and 2018 tournaments on 20 March 2015 during their meeting in Zürich, Switzerland.

[33] FIFA also named a man of the match for the best player in each game at the tournament.