Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA, has indicated that the organization will explore expanding the World Cup to 64 teams before the 2030 tournament. In an interview with Bluewin, a Swiss media outlet, Infantino said that growing the field from 48 to 64 teams could make sense and would be examined after the current tournament.
Infantino’s Rationale for Expansion
“That’s definitely an issue that will be examined and discussed in the relevant committees after this World Cup,” Infantino said. “When organising a World Cup, it’s important to organise it for the whole world – not just Europe and South America – but effectively the entire world. Every nation should be allowed to dream of participating in the World Cup. You can see that the quality of the teams is extremely high – and it’s getting higher and higher, all over the world. If you don’t give smaller countries a chance to participate in the World Cup, they’ll lack the incentive to keep improving.”
Current Format and Success
The World Cup field expanded from 32 to 48 teams for the 2026 edition, marking the first time since 1998 that the tournament increased in size. The 2026 tournament features 104 matches, with only the semi-finals, third-place playoff, and final remaining. Infantino called the 48-team format a “huge success,” noting that every team played at a high level and that teams from every continent scored goals and earned at least one point. He highlighted that nine out of ten African teams reached the knockout stage, compared to only five African teams at the last World Cup.
2030 Multi-Continent Tournament
The 2030 World Cup is scheduled to be a multi-continent effort, with the first three matches played in Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay (one per country), and the remaining games in Morocco, Portugal, and Spain. An expansion to 64 teams could allow the South American nations to each host a full four-team group, rather than just one match, providing a more substantial role for the host countries.
