FIFA President Infantino considers further World Cup expansion to 64 teams possible

Infantino's interim verdict: Expansion a success

Infantino drew a positive interim conclusion during the ongoing tournament. The expansion to 48 teams is "ein riesiger Erfolg," said the 56-year-old. He also pushed back against criticism of the strain on players: Even with a further expansion to 64 teams, the maximum would remain eight matches per team, if the additional 16 nations were accommodated in four additional groups.

At the same time, Infantino pointed to sporting development in many regions. "Man sieht, die Qualität von den Teams ist allgemein extrem hoch und wird höher, höher und höher, überall auf der Welt," he said. The world is "nicht nur Europa und Südamerika." The whole world must be allowed to dream of participating in a World Cup.

Pressure from South America: 64 teams for the 2030 World Cup?

The discussion about a renewal of the format is not new. Months ago, the expansion to 64 teams had been raised, including by South American federation chief Alejandro Dominguez. He is demanding that the 2030 World Cup, which takes place on the occasion of the tournament's 100th anniversary, be held with 64 teams. More than the previously planned three opening matches in South America could be held for this purpose.

The history of the tournament shows a steady expansion. In 1930, the first World Cup kicked off in Uruguay with 13 teams and 18 matches. This was followed by 16 participants between 1934 and 1978, then 24 teams from 1982 to 1994, and finally 32 teams from 1998 to 2022. With the expansion to 48 teams in 2026, the number of matches rose to 104. An expansion to 64 teams would nearly double the number of participating nations within just a few years.

Financial dimension: Record revenues expected

According to observers, there are above all sporting and financial reasons to speak in favor of an expansion. The inclusion of smaller federations has so far not led to any discernible drop in quality. In addition, FIFA expects record revenues: Up to 14 billion US dollars are to be generated by the 2026 tournament, as Infantino announced before the start. At the FIFA Congress in Vancouver, he had also promised that the balance sheet over the four-year period until the 2030 World Cup would be "noch viel besser."

Behind the expansion debate there is also a political component. Through prize money and payments from the FIFA development program, Infantino supplies all 211 national associations with financial resources. These associations are entitled to vote when the FIFA President runs for re-election in 2027. Human rights activists see this as a problem.

Criticism of FIFA: Structural flaws in the world federation

Nick McGeehan of the organization FairSquare calls the financial relationship between the president and those entitled to vote a "struktureller Mangel" of the world federation in conversation with the Sportschau. Infantino rejected the criticism of FIFA's structure and asked where the money should go if not to the member associations. A dissenting voice was also recently formulated by a commentator: "Solange die Führungsspitze den Mitgliedsverbänden enorme Summen zur Verfügung stellt, bleibt die FIFA eine dysfunktionale Organisation."

Against a further expansion, the density of matches is above all invoked. The tournament already comprises 104 matches, 72 of them group matches. By comparison: A complete Bundesliga season has 306 matches, without relegation. Critics fear market saturation and viewer overload. In addition, the calculations with the best third-placed teams complicated the 2026 tournament for fans. This issue would become obsolete with an expansion to 64 teams, that is, with a group stage of 16 groups of four.

Match density and player workload: The counterarguments

The strain on players was also an issue in 2026. In 2022, there were still four days between each of the German team's three group matches; in 2026, there were six and five days. However, the total number of matches per team does not change with an expansion from 48 to 64 teams — it would remain at a maximum of eight matches.

What a possible format with 64 teams could look like in concrete terms is still open. An obvious variant would be a tournament with 16 groups of four teams each, followed by a knockout round. The debate is likely to become concrete only after the end of the current tournament. Infantino then wants to officially initiate it.

Possible formats: 16 groups as a model

Regardless of the outcome of the discussion, it remains to be noted: The 2026 World Cup is the first major event of this kind to be held in three countries. It is already regarded as a record tournament in terms of revenue and number of matches. A decision on the next expansion will be made by the FIFA Council, in which the German federation chief Bernd Neuendorf also has a vote.

Should the World Cup actually grow to 64 teams, the consequence for the global tournament calendar would be significant. The number of matches would rise further, but the qualification pressure for smaller nations would ease. FIFA is thus steering toward a new process of weighing reach, competitive quality, and economic logic.