FIFA has confirmed that it will review a proposal to expand the 2030 World Cup to 64 teams, marking the centenary of the tournament.
The 2030 edition is set to be hosted by Morocco, Spain, and Portugal, with Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay—the country that staged the first-ever World Cup in 1930—hosting three games.
A FIFA spokesperson told Reuters that the idea was raised spontaneously by a FIFA Council member during a meeting on March 5, 2025, and that FIFA has a duty to analyze any proposal from its Council members.
The proposal was reportedly made by Ignacio Alonso, a delegate from Uruguay, and was met with stunned silence at the meeting, according to The New York Times. The report also suggested that financial and political factors could influence FIFA’s decision.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino called the proposal “interesting” and said it should be analyzed further, according to sources cited by The New York Times.
