How the 2026 World Cup will work with Fifa set to approve 48-team format ⚽ MichaelHincks explains
How gloriously and utterly Fifa to decide and announce that the World Cup would be enlarged to 48 teams before bothering to work out how a 48-team World Cup would actually be organised. It will surprise absolutely nobody who has paid any attention to world football’s governing body that an increase in teams means an increase in revenue. Still, this allows them to Grow The Game, remember. Say thank you, peasants.
What is the end result of all this? A shiny penny to any of you who guessed “more football”, although you probably just guess that every time because it’s always more football. Teams at the World Cup from 2026 onwards will now have to play an extra match on their way to the final. The extension of the tournament means that teams will have seven fewer days to prepare at the end of the domestic season. There will now be 104 matches in total, or a third of a Bundesliga season.
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