In 2017, the Fifa council agreed to enlarge the World Cup from 32 to 48 nations.
Conmebol, the South American football body, submitted a formal plan in April 2025 to increase the 2030 World Cup to 64 sides, but no final ruling has been made.
Spain, Portugal and Morocco will be the main co-hosts of the 2030 tournament, while Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay will stage the opening three games to commemorate the event’s centenary. The first World Cup was held in Uruguay in 1930.
Uefa chief Aleksander Ceferin is one of those who have brushed aside the 64-team suggestion, describing it as a “poor choice” for both the finals and the qualification campaign.
Asian Football Confederation (AFC) president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa echoed that view, warning that further expansion would result in “disorder”.
Victor Montagliani, head of Concacaf, the body governing football in North and Central America and the Caribbean, said the idea “does not sit well” and would hurt “the wider football landscape”.
Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House task force for the World Cup, countered that the United States might look into bidding for the 2038 tournament and could “manage” a 64-team version.
Fifa has long maintained that it will examine expansion possibilities with partners and is bound to review any proposals brought by council members.
The final say belongs to the Fifa council, but there is no sign that anything is about to happen on that front.
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