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FIFA’s ruling council on Tuesday approved an expansion of the World Cup from 32 to 48 teams in 2026.
Below are details of the new format
48 teams: Three groups of 16 teams each
Each team will play each other – i.e three games per group – and the top two will advance to a knockout round.
First knockout round
The knockout round will then have 32 teams. They will be paired and at the end 16 teams will emerge.
Second knockout round
16 teams, all paired play one another and eight teams will progress to the next round which is the quarterfinals.
Quarterfinals
Then 8 teams make it to the quarterfinals, another knockout round that will lead to the semi finals
Semi Finals
Four teams play the semi-final to produce two finalists
Final and third place
As usual, third place and Final matches prioduce the World Cup winner, second, third and fourth placed teams.
Other facts
- There will be 80 matches as opposed to the current 64
- If a team progresses to the final in 2026, they will have played seven matches, the same number as a 32-team World Cup
- With 48 teams with squads of 23, 1,104 players will head to the 2026 event
- A confidential FIFA report seen by AFP projects a cash boost of $640 million (605 million euros) above projected revenues for next year’s finals in Russia.