FIFA president Gianni Infantino has confirmed that football’s global governing body will review a proposal to increase the FIFA World Cup to 64 teams for the 2030 tournament after the conclusion of the ongoing 2026 edition.
The 2026 World Cup, co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, is the first edition to feature 48 teams following the expansion from the 32-team format used between 1998 and 2022.
Speaking to Swiss media outlet Bluewin, Infantino said the proposal would be considered by FIFA’s decision-making committees.
“It (a 64-team tournament) is definitely an issue that will be examined and discussed in the relevant committees after this World Cup,” Infantino said.
He maintained that the World Cup should remain an inclusive global competition, noting that it is “for the whole world, not just Europe and South America”.
According to him, allowing more countries to qualify for the tournament would contribute to the continued growth of football across the globe.
“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.”
Infantino also defended the expansion to 48 teams, describing its introduction as a success.
He said the move had been “100 percent a success”, despite criticism from some quarters, including Ghana head coach Carlos Queiroz, who argued earlier in the tournament that increasing the number of participating teams had reduced the significance of qualification.
The proposal for another expansion gathered momentum after Uruguayan football official Ignacio Alonso presented the idea of a 64-team World Cup during a FIFA Council meeting in March 2025.
Later that year, CONMEBOL president Alejandro Dominguez publicly endorsed the proposal, describing it as his “dream” and saying it would “unite the world, just once”.
The 2030 FIFA World Cup is already scheduled to be hosted across six countries spanning three continents.
Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay will each stage one opening fixture, while Morocco, Portugal and Spain will host the rest of the tournament.
Supporters believe a larger tournament would enable the three South American nations to host entire groups instead of just one match each.
However, the proposal has attracted criticism from some football administrators. UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin previously described it as “bad idea”, arguing that it could lower the standard of both the World Cup and the European qualifying campaign. CONCACAF president Victor Montagliani has also questioned the plan, calling it “not a great idea.”
Infantino also disclosed that he has kept in regular contact with U.S. President Donald Trump throughout the tournament.
According to the FIFA president, Trump has been closely monitoring the competition and is expected to present the trophy to the champions after the World Cup final, as previously announced.