FIFA president Gianni Infantino believes the newly enlarged 2026 World Cup was a success and says he is ready to discuss the next edition, which will involve 64 countries.
Gianni Infantino is ready to consider a 64-team World Cup in four years’ time (Image: Getty)
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has confirmed that FIFA will consider expanding the World Cup further into a 64-team tournament in 2030, after declaring the 2026 edition a major victory.
Gianni Infantino has said that FIFA will consider adding 16 more countries to the World Cup, making it a 64-team tournament for the next edition in 2030. The tournament was held from 1998 to 2022 with 32 teams, but this summer it was expanded to 48 teams for the first time.
The 2030 tournament will be held across six countries and three continents, with Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay hosting one match, with the core of the tournament split between Morocco, Portugal and Spain.
Last September, FIFA held talks about expanding the competition again for 2030 after receiving a formal proposal, and Infantino confirmed talks would take place after this summer’s tournament.
“It (a 64-team tournament) is definitely an issue that will be considered and discussed by the relevant committees after this World Cup,” the FIFA president said in an interview with Swiss outlet Brewin. Infantino went on to say that the World Cup is “not just for Europe or South America, but for the whole world.”
He added: “Every country should be allowed to have the dream of participating in the World Cup. We see that the quality of the teams is very high, and the level is getting higher and higher all over the world. If we don’t give smaller countries the chance to participate in the World Cup, they will lack the incentive to continue to grow.”
Infantino insisted the 48-team World Cup was a “100 per cent success” despite differing opinions. There has been a lack of quality in some matches, which some see as devaluing the group stage, but ultimately it is harder to get knocked out than to qualify for the knockouts.
FIFA leaders believe the latest expansion was a huge success
The 64-team tournament means more than a quarter of FIFA’s 210 international men’s teams will be participating, which could have a big impact on the perception of how difficult qualifying is.
UEFA president Aleksandar Ceferin opposed the idea of a 64-team World Cup, calling the proposal a “bad idea”. His North American counterpart, CONCACAF president Victor Montagliani, echoed that view, calling it “not a great idea.”
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