FIFA weighs 64-team World Cup for 2030 after 48-team debut
What's next: FIFA committees are set to review the idea after the 2026 tournament, with some regional leaders warning a bigger field could disrupt qualifying.
FIFA is set to study whether the men’s World Cup should expand to 64 teams for the 2030 tournament, after debuting a 48-team format in 2026. President Gianni Infantino argued a larger field would widen access beyond Europe and South America and give smaller nations more incentive to improve. The 2030 edition is scheduled across Spain, Portugal and Morocco, with opening matches in Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay as part of the tournament’s centenary. Conmebol formally pushed the 64-team idea in 2025, but it has drawn resistance. UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin called it a bad idea, while the Asian Football Confederation and Concacaf have also warned that further expansion could create disorder and hurt the wider football system.