FIFA will examine the possibility of taking the men’s World Cup to 64 teams after the 2026 tournament, according to president Gianni Infantino. The statement has put the format of the 2030 finals back at the centre of the conversation while the first 48-team World Cup is still being played in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
This is a review, not a decision. Infantino said the subject would be examined by FIFA’s relevant committees after the current World Cup. Any change would therefore need to move through FIFA’s competition and decision-making processes before it could be used for 2030.
Why the idea matters: 2026 has already expanded the finals from 32 to 48 teams and from 64 matches to 104. The tournament opened on 11 June and ends with the final on 19 July. Its 16 host venues across three countries make it the largest World Cup yet by both participating teams and match count.
A move from 48 to 64 teams would mean another 16 national sides at the finals. The sporting consequence would depend on the format FIFA chooses: more groups, a different route into the knockout rounds, and potentially a longer match calendar are all questions that have not been settled. A 64-team knockout tournament alone would contain 63 matches before a third-place game, but that is only one theoretical model.
The timing is notable because the 2030 World Cup is scheduled to be hosted principally by Morocco, Portugal and Spain, with centenary matches planned in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. That geographic spread would make calendars, travel and venue planning central to any expansion discussion.
For supporters, the immediate takeaway is straightforward: the 2026 tournament remains a 48-team, 104-match competition. The 64-team proposal is a post-tournament policy question, not a change to this week’s semifinal or the 19 July final. FIFA’s eventual format choice would shape qualification opportunities as much as the finals themselves.