
In 2026, the World Cup will be larger and longer than ever due to an expansion of the field, and FIFA leaders are talking about adding 24 more games to the format.
In the new format, 48 teams will play 104 games over as many as 40 days in three countries, and the champion and runner-up will each play eight rounds instead of seven currently.
After Tuesday’s meeting of FIFA’s governing council, football’s global governing body and the World Cup’s organizer, the format is expected to be approved.
The 104 World Cup matches would significantly increase from previous plans that had called for 80 games and 40 more than last year’s tournament in Qatar.
Adding matches helps FIFA chase its revenue target of more than £9bn. Still, it also solves format issues for the event co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.