Radical World Cup change could be scrapped

1 year ago 65

FIFA could denote a backflip connected the determination to person three-team groups astatine the 2026 World Cup arsenic aboriginal arsenic this month.

With the finals expanding from 32 to 48 teams for the tourney successful the United States, Mexico and Canada, the format of 8 groups of 4 nations was owed to alteration to 16 groups of 3 nations.

But the drama of the last time of radical matches successful Qatar successful 2022 has forced a rethink.

The BBC reports that there's overwhelming enactment for the retention of the four-team format, arsenic agelong arsenic the magnitude of the tourney isn't increased.

"Groups of 3 sounded large but determination are immoderate issues," Concacaf president Victor Montagliani told the FT Business of Football Summit.

"Is it close that you suffice for a World Cup and a 3rd of teams spell location aft 2 games?

"We bash person to beryllium responsible. There was a footprint of days for 2014 and 2018 and we can't spell implicit that. We can't person a three-month World Cup."

Reverting backmost to groups of 4 would mean an summation successful the fig of games from 80 to 104.

According to the BBC, Montagliani has conceded expanding the fig of matches volition rise concerns implicit the biology interaction of the tournament, but steps volition beryllium taken to minimise the problem.

"The lucifer docket is precise important," helium said. "You can't person teams travelling from New York to Los Angeles.

"Teams volition play successful pods. There volition beryllium a radical playing retired of Boston, Philadelphia and New York. Another 1 successful Vancouver and Seattle and different successful LA and San Francisco.

"There are different strategies that person to beryllium applied arsenic good truthful we adhere to what is enactment successful the bid."

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