CONMEBOL President Alejandro Dominguez has asserted on social media that the 2030 World Cup will expand to include 64 participating nations. This claim follows the recent confirmation that the 2026 World Cup in North America will feature a 48-team format.
The 2030 tournament, also known as the centenary edition, is set to be co-hosted by Spain, Morocco, and Portugal, with three ceremonial opening matches planned for Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
Dominguez announced the potential expansion in a post on the platform X, stating, "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."
While FIFA has not officially confirmed this expansion, President Gianni Infantino has previously expressed openness to evaluating further growth for the tournament. Infantino told Swiss broadcaster Blue Sport that expansion is an issue that will be examined by relevant committees after the 2026 World Cup. He emphasized the importance of organizing the World Cup for the entire world, not just specific continents, and allowing every nation the possibility to participate and dream of taking part.
Infantino also noted the increasing quality of teams globally and suggested that limiting participation discourages smaller nations from improving.
If implemented, a 64-team format would significantly increase the number of matches, potentially to 128, doubling the 32-team format's total. The group stage might expand to 16 groups of four teams, increasing the group-stage fixtures from 72 to 96. Such an expansion could extend the tournament's duration to six weeks, potentially creating scheduling conflicts with clubs and increasing player commitments.
FIFA's governing bodies are expected to convene meetings to assess the feasibility of this proposed expansion. The organization faces the challenge of balancing commercial interests with concerns from player unions and clubs regarding athlete workloads. A final decision on the tournament format is anticipated to be announced at a future FIFA Congress.