2026/07/13 10:46

FIFA President Gianni Infantino revealed that the federation will discuss after the end of the 2026 World Cup the possibility of expanding the tournament in the future to 64 teams, stressing that no decision on this matter will be made before evaluating the current edition, which is being held for the first time with 48 teams.

Infantino said in statements to Swiss Blue Sport that all proposals regarding the future of the World Cup will be studied after the conclusion of the current edition, without revealing additional details about the expansion mechanism or its implementation timeline.

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He pointed out that the goal of organizing the World Cup is to represent all continents of the world, not just Europe and South America, adding: 'Every country should have the dream of participating in the World Cup. The level of teams is constantly rising around the world, and if we do not give small countries the opportunity to participate, they will lose the incentive to develop.'

The FIFA president praised the success of the current edition, which sees 48 teams participating for the first time, considering that the criticism that accompanied the decision to increase the number of teams from 32 to 48 was not reflected in the level of the tournament, affirming that all teams presented competitive levels, and teams from different continents scored goals and earned points during the competition.

He noted that 9 out of 10 African teams reached the knockout stages, compared to only five teams that participated in the previous edition, considering this evidence of the importance of expanding the participation base and giving more teams the opportunity to appear on the global stage.

Infantino also defended the hydration breaks applied during matches in hot weather, after they were criticized for giving broadcasters additional advertising periods. He explained that these breaks are only applied when climatic conditions demand it, noting that they were used in about 60% of the Club World Cup matches last year in the United States, while they were not necessary in the rest of the matches due to lower temperatures.

Regarding ticket prices, Infantino confirmed that the huge fan turnout proves the success of the pricing policy, explaining that stadium occupancy reached 99.7%, and is expected to reach 99.9% by the end of the tournament, noting that many tickets are sold on the secondary market at prices four or five times their original price.

The FIFA president revealed that the international federation expects revenues between 13 and 14 billion Swiss francs (equivalent to about 16 to 17.3 billion dollars) from the 2026 World Cup, which lasts 39 days, describing these returns as 'very satisfactory.'

The 2026 World Cup is being held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico with 48 teams for the first time, while Morocco, Spain, and Portugal will host the 2030 edition, before Saudi Arabia hosts the 2034 World Cup.