The president of South American football governing body, CONMEBOL, Alejandro Domínguez, has indicated that the 2030 FIFA World Cup could feature 64 teams.
Domínguez made the remark in a post on X while highlighting the significance of the tournament’s centenary celebrations.
He wrote, “In 2030, the World Cup comes to Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay, a great opportunity for football, to celebrate the World Cup Centenary with a 64-team tournament.”
The 2030 World Cup will be jointly hosted by Spain, Morocco and Portugal, while Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay will stage three centenary matches to commemorate the competition’s 100th anniversary.
Although Domínguez’s post has fuelled speculation, FIFA has yet to officially confirm any decision to expand the tournament to 64 teams.
However, FIFA president Gianni Infantino revealed on July 12 that the governing body will consider the proposal after the 2026 World Cup.
“This is certainly an issue that will be looked at and discussed in the relevant committees after this World Cup,” Infantino told Swiss broadcaster Blue Sport when asked about the possibility of a 64-team tournament.
“When you organize a World Cup, it’s important that you organize it for the whole world. It’s not just Europe and South America, but the entire world, effectively. Every nation should be able to dream of taking part in the World Cup.
“We can see that the quality of the teams is extremely high, and it’s getting higher and higher everywhere in the world. If you don’t give smaller countries the chance to participate in the World Cup, they also lose the incentive to keep improving.”
The 2026 World Cup, won by Spain, was the first edition to feature 48 teams, increasing the number of matches from 64 under the previous 32-team format to 104.
If FIFA eventually approves a 64-team tournament for 2030, the competition would expand further to 128 matches, twice the number played under the 32-team format used between 1998 and 2022.
