Could the next World Cup have even more teams? FIFA is considering it

When it was announced that this year would be the largest World Cup in history, fought between a record 48 teams, there was a bit of pushback initially.

The World Cup should be selective, some argued. The overall quality of the games will be negatively impacted, others said.

And while both of those statements were true to some extent, the 48-team competition has won a lot of people over.

First, many of the debutants did themselves proud. Just look at Cape Verde reaching the knockout rounds or Curaçao winning over hearts with their passion and excitement (not to mention their sensational kits). If it weren’t for the extended format, some of the best storylines at this World Cup would never have existed.

So, it’s perhaps only natural that FIFA President Gianni Infantino would consider adding even more nations to the mix.

“That’s definitely an issue that will be examined and discussed in the relevant committees after this World Cup,” he said when Swiss outlet Bluewin asked about the possibility of a 64-team tournament in the future.

“When organizing a World Cup, it’s important to organize it for the whole world – not just Europe and South America – but effectively the entire world. Every nation should be ⁠allowed to dream of participating in the World Cup.

“You can see that the quality of the teams is extremely high – and it’s getting higher and higher, all over the world. If you don’t give smaller countries a chance to participate in the World Cup, they’ll lack the incentive to keep improving.”

The next World Cup in 2030 is to be co-hosted by Spain, Portugal and Morocco. However, the first three matches will be played in Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay to mark 100 years since the first edition of the tournament was played in Uruguay.

CONMEBOL, the governing body for South American soccer, has already proposed a 2030 World Cup consisting of 64 teams to properly celebrate the centenary.

And while many will see the benefits of such an expansion, both financially and in terms of legacy, there will be others who are less excited.

The tournament is already taking much longer because of the 104-game schedule. Players who reach the latter stages have little time off before their domestic club seasons get back underway as it stands. I can’t imagine players will be over the moon about yet more competition.

It feels like this proposal is still in the early stages, but it does raise an important question: Can you have too much of a good thing? It appears we’ll have to wait to find out.