Tide turns against 48

ANY slim chance of the World Cup expanding to 48 teams at Qatar 2022 has been made even less likely because russia 2018 has witnessed so many memorable games already.

South American confederation CONMeBOL proposed the extended tournament — welcomed by FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who knows that extra countries at the World Cup will translate into extra votes for him when he stands for re-election next year.

A final decision has been delayed until after the World Cup. But the 32-team format, which has worked so well over the last three weeks from the group stage to the last-16 knockout matches, has created little appetite on the FIFA council to bring forward the 48-team competition, which is due to start in 2026.

An official announcement will have to wait until FIFA have formally discussed the initiative with Qatar. But it isn’t going to happen.

Unfortunately, the 48-team event in USA/ Mexico/Canada in 2026 is set in stone and potentially in 2030 too, when england are expected to bid. And by the time a comparison can be made between the 48- and 32-team competitions, the 2030 hosts will already have been elected.