South American Soccer Head: Expand 2030 World Cup To 64 Teams

[Chris Francis]

The world’s biggest and astir celebrated sporting arena – by a mile – is nan World Cup and location is yet different telephone to make it moreover bigger. At slightest for nan 2030 competition.

Thursday, nan president of CONMEBOL, nan governing assemblage of shot successful South America, became nan latest precocious ranking charismatic to propose expanding nan World Cup from 48 teams to 64. Alejandro Domínguez believes nan description would beryllium a unsocial measurement to observe nan 100th day of nan event. It would besides beryllium a one-time alteration astatine slightest for now.

The 2030 World Cup is already scheduled to dispersed retired complete nan largest geographic area successful tourney history pinch six countries connected 3 continents hosting games. Uruguay, Paraguay, Argentina, Spain, Portugal and Morocco. Uruguay, which hosted nan first Cup successful 1930, was nan first federation to propose a 64 squad description .

The description would apt let each 10 CONMEBOL members to make nan tourney including Venezuela who person ne'er qualified for nan World Cup. In a reside to his members Dominguez said. “This will let each countries to person nan opportunity to unrecorded nan world acquisition and truthful cipher connected nan satellite is near retired of nan party,”

A bigger statement was nan information erstwhile nan World Cup expanded from 32 to 48 teams for nan upcoming 2026 tourney to beryllium held successful nan US, Canada and Mexico.
But not everyone is connected board. Last week, UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin was blunt successful his assessment.

[Aleksander Čeferin UEFA president]

“This connection was possibly much astonishing for maine than for you. I deliberation it’s a bad idea. I deliberation it’s not a bully thought for nan World Cup itself and it’s not a bully thought for our qualifiers arsenic well, you know? So, I’m not supporting that idea, I don’t cognize wherever it came from.”

[Chris Francis]

Some of nan drawbacks that will beryllium debated by FIFA arsenic they determine whether to grow are nan watering down of nan title and of qualifying criteria. And nan important recreation and logistical challenges. Having truthful galore much teams intends much venues and much infrastructure.

As you mightiness guess, nan bottommost statement could beryllium nan determining factor. Adding 16 much teams appears to person support from FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who typically sees much title and much venues arsenic a measurement to raise money and turn nan game.
For Straight Arrow News I’m Chris Francis.