FIFA President Gianni Infantino has confirmed that world football’s governing body will examine the possibility of expanding the men’s FIFA World Cup to 64 teams after the conclusion of the 2026 tournament, ESPN reported, citing comments made by the FIFA chief to Swiss broadcaster Blue Sport.
Speaking to Blue Sport, Infantino said the proposal would be discussed by FIFA’s relevant committees once the ongoing World Cup concludes.
“This is certainly an issue that will be looked at and discussed in the relevant committees after this World Cup,” Infantino said. “When you organize a World Cup, it’s important that you organize it for the whole world. It’s not just Europe and South America, but the entire world. Every nation should be able to dream of taking part in the World Cup.”
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The 2026 FIFA World Cup, being hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, is the first edition to feature 48 teams after expanding from the previous 32-team format. A further increase to 64 teams would double the number of participating nations from the format used between 1998 and 2022.
Infantino argued that expanding the tournament could help strengthen football globally by giving emerging nations greater opportunities to compete.
“We can see that the quality of the teams is extremely high, and it’s getting higher and higher everywhere in the world,” he said. “If you don’t give smaller countries the chance to participate in the World Cup, they also lose the incentive to keep improving.”
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The proposal first emerged in March 2025, when South American football confederation CONMEBOL suggested expanding the centenary 2030 World Cup. FIFA later held discussions with CONMEBOL President Alejandro Domínguez and football officials from Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay.
The idea, however, has drawn criticism. Concacaf President Victor Montagliani has said he does not believe a 64-team World Cup is “the right move” for the tournament or the wider football ecosystem, while UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin has previously described the proposal as “a bad idea.”
If approved, a 64-team World Cup would feature 128 matches, compared with the 104 being played at the expanded 2026 tournament.