Thanks to political and logistical issues, Fifa has dropped its plans to expand the 2022 World Cup in Qatar from 32 teams to 48 by playing some games in neighbouring Gulf countries.
Though Fifa had voted in January to include 48 countries only in the 2026 World Cup, Fifa President Gianni Infantino had been championing for the expansion in 2022 but is learnt to have reluctantly accepted that it would be too challenging to do so.
Infantino will formally announce at Fifa Congress on June 5 in Paris that the 2022 tournament will remain at 32 teams. It will, as was previously decided, rise to 48 for the 2026 World Cup to be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Said a Fifa statement; “Fifa and Qatar have jointly explored all possibilities to increase the number of participant teams from 32 to 48 teams by involving neighbouring countries at the Fifa World Cup Qatar 2022. Following a thorough and comprehensive consultation process with the involvement of all the relevant stakeholders, it was concluded that under the current circumstances such a proposal could not be made now.”
Fifa had discussed with Qatar if a 48-team tournament was feasible but both parties concluded that an analysis of the impact of that decision could not be concluded in time for a vote in Paris.
The 2022 World Cup “will therefore remain as originally planned with 32 teams,” Fifa said, “and no proposal will be submitted at the next Fifa Congress on 5 June.”
Sources said an ongoing political and economic blockade of Qatar by some of its neighbours created intractable practical obstacles that could not be overcome.
Qatar, which has prepared for a 32-team tournament in eight stadiums since winning the hosting rights in 2010, had indicated difficulties in accommodating an expanded event. Its neighbour Oman, on which Fifa was banking to absorb some of the added matches required by a 48-team field, also said recently that it could not prepare itself for the event in time.
Not long ago, Fifa’s deputy secretary general, Zvonimir Boban, had also said that coming up with a solution was all but impossible given the requirements needed to add additional hosts for the tournament.
The tournament, moved to November from its usual summer window to avoid the scorching Gulf heat, also would have needed to fit inside a contracted 28-day schedule to meet the demands of Europe’s biggest leagues and clubs.