TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - FIFA President Gianni Infantino said that his organization will begin considering the idea of expanding the 2030 World Cup to 64 teams.
According to him, more countries deserve the opportunity to realize their dream of participating in the world's biggest football tournament.
"This idea (of increasing the number of participants) will be considered after the current World Cup ends. When organizing a tournament, it's important to consider not only Europe and South America, but the entire world," Infantino said, as quoted by Swiss media outlet Bluewin on Sunday and cited by Antara.
He said every country has the opportunity to realize their dream of participating in the World Cup. Therefore, increasing the number of participants must be considered.
Infantino believes the 2026 World Cup format, which for the first time featured 48 teams, has had a positive impact on the development of global football. Therefore, he is optimistic that the number of participants can be increased again for the 2030 edition.
The 2026 World Cup will be the first edition to use the 48-team format. In addition to the increased group size, the tournament also introduces a new system with a place in the knockout stage awarded to the best third-place finishers.
According to Infantino, increasing the number of participants has proven to make the competition more even and open up greater opportunities for countries outside of the traditional football powers.
"This tournament, featuring 48 national teams, has proven to be very successful. All teams demonstrated a high level of play," Infantino said, as quoted by Sky Sports.
He added that the success of countries from various confederations is proof that expanding participation benefits the development of global football.
"Teams from every continent scored goals and earned at least one point. Nine out of ten African teams reached the knockout stage. This once again demonstrates the importance of giving every team a chance," he concluded.
Read: England Beats Norway in Extra Time to Reach World Cup Semifinals
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