‘Bad Idea’ For 2030 World Cup To Have 64 Teams — UEFA President 

‘Bad Idea’ For 2030 World Cup To Have 64 Teams — UEFA President 

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin stated on Thursday that expanding the 2030 FIFA World Cup to 64 teams would be “a bad idea.”

The tournament’s format is already set to grow from 32 to 48 teams for the 2026 edition, which will be hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada. However, Ignacio Alonso, head of the Uruguayan football federation, proposed further expansion during the FIFA Council meeting in March.

Football’s global governing body said it “had a duty to analyse” the proposal, which European chief Ceferin denounced at UEFA’s congress in Belgrade.

“It’s maybe even more surprising for me than for you. I think it’s a bad idea,” Ceferin said.

“I think it’s not a good idea for the World Cup itself and it’s not a good idea for our qualifiers as well, as you know.

“So, I’m not supporting that idea. I don’t know where it came from. It’s strange that we didn’t know anything before this proposal at the FIFA Council.”

It’s worthy of note that the 2030 World Cup will take place across three continents, with Portugal, Spain, and Morocco as the primary hosts.

Additionally, three matches will be played in South America—in Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay—to commemorate the tournament’s centenary, as the first-ever World Cup was held in Uruguay in 1930.

This decision also facilitated Saudi Arabia’s selection as the host nation for the 2034 World Cup.