FIFA is considering a major expansion of the 2030 World Cup, with a proposal to increase the number of participating teams from 48 to 64. This would be a one-off expansion to mark the tournament’s centenary.
The proposal was reportedly made by Ignacio Alonso, a delegate from Uruguay, during a FIFA Council meeting on March 5, 2025.
According to a FIFA spokesperson;
“A proposal to analyze a 64-team FIFA World Cup to celebrate the centenary of the FIFA World Cup in 2030 was spontaneously raised by a FIFA Council member in the ‘miscellaneous’ agenda item near the end of the FIFA Council meeting held on March 5, 2025.”
The spokesperson added,
“The idea was acknowledged as FIFA has a duty to analyze any proposal from one of its Council members.”
The 2030 World Cup will be hosted by Morocco, Spain, Portugal, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
The tournament will mark the 100th anniversary of the World Cup, which was first held in Uruguay in 1930.
