FIFA announces 48-team world cup for 2026

Yes, you can have all 0-0 draws and go through every match on a penalty shootout win. That is currently possible, but highly unlikely. The proposed system of only 2 matches in the group stage increases the statistical probability that you can progress through to the knockout stages with two 0-0 draws and thus increases the statistical probability you can win the world cup without scoring a goal. Lower ranked teams will also play more defensively in the 2 group games to try to force a 0-0 draw and win the penalty shootout. Having said all that, its a very small chance of a team scoring no goals and going all the way to win.

Whilst it is technically possible under both systems to win a World Cup without scoring a goal it is a risk that we willingly embrace being the crazy, thrill-addicted individuals that we are!

So you are telling me that no matter what happens before hand, in the quarter finals, semis, and final you can win it without scoring a goal...? Impossible.

Except that it is actually possible in this system to win the world cup without scoring a goal. However that would technically have been possible under the old 4 team group, but less likely.

"Its possible in this system to win the world cup without ever scoring a goal." That's about the dumbest sentence I have read on this site.

On social media (@thehuwdavies) has created possible 2026 WC Groups using today's Fifa rankings. https://goo.gl/photos/p7g9zeKAbWshThhd7 Group H looks tasty. NZL had no fear when they held reigning World Champions Italy to a draw in 2010 in Sth Africa, they'd fancy themselves in a penalty shootout if they did that again.

Didn’t take you long to stir the pot. Again

The kiwi's will love the chance to get flogged by Germany

Didn't take you long to stir the pot. Again

8 groups of 4 would certainly add to the stress levels during qualifying, which would also rely on accurate seeding for those groups.

Yeah I would think continental playoffs would be a thing of the past - either we get 9 or CONCACAF get 7 - and having 0.5 spots in an expanded format seems rediculous imo. Good to see Oceania get a spot, though if so.

A 32 team knockout could create a lot of fairytale underdog stories, but also upset a lot of fans if a favourite gets rolled. If say, Brazil, got beaten by a lower ranked team with a one-off loss and don't even make the final 16, I don't know if that's good for the tournament. I know it can happen at any stage, but you don't want it becoming a lucky dip where the minnow teams only need to jag 1 win to go far.

Group A Final match is not a dead rubber since finishing 1st or 2nd will determine which nation you play in the knock out. Top team in Group A plays 2nd in Group B (England) instead of West Germany. Big difference Group C Final match is not a dead rubber. Top team in Group C plays 2nd in Group D (Austria) instead of France Big difference

The 16 groups of 3 allows them to go to a group of 32 (top two from each group), and knock out thereafter. 16 teams go home after playing 2 games, the total games played is roughly the same. Those, such as I, who have followed the world cup for a very long time will recall that the 1982 world cup had four groups of 3 teams in the 2nd round (this was the first World cup featuring 24 teams). The World Cup as a whole is fondly remembered, that 2nd round were mostly pretty poor games. I'll run through each group, and give you my memory of what happened, and you'll get a feel for how these groups of three might pan out. Group A Poland, Belgium, Soviet Union Poland had started its campaign with two nil-all draws, but then thumped Peru 5-1 to get through to the second round, and then continued that goal scoring run with a 3-0 win over Belgium (Boniek with a hatrick). This then put the acid on the Soviet Union, who played it safe in their game against Belgium, jagging a 1-0 win (Belgium were the better team); and were banking on beating Poland to get through. Poland chalked up its 3rd nil-all draw, in a depressingly boring defensive game. In the current system, Soviet Union would have gone through anyway, so this game would be a dead rubber. Group B West Germany, England and Spain West Germany and England started things off, and played out a dull nil-all draw, both banking on beating hosts Spain, who had been poor all tournament. West Germany did beat Spain 2-0, and then in the final game, Spain denied England in another nil-all draw. In the current system, both West Germany and England would go through. Group C Italy, Brazil and Argentina This was actually one of the more interesting groups, mainly because Brazil was in it. Both Italy and Brazil defeated Argentina in their games, but Brazil had an extra goal up its sleeve, so only needed to draw Italy in the 3rd game, but being Brazil, it couldn't hold onto a draw, and Italy won through with a hatrick from Paulo Rossi. In the current system, that 3rd game would have been a dead rubber. Group D France, Austria, Northern Ireland France got through easily with both wins, Austria managed to draw Northern Ireland and lose by less against France, so it would have gone through in the current system.

Yeah but in other world cups draws are not sufficient for progress, teams have to win at least one game. Its possible in this system to win the world cup without ever scoring a goal. Tactics will change from balancing attack and defense to all out defense with some penalty practice. It will be tedious viewing. There will be no reason to ever attack the goal for a minnow. Football introduced 3 points for a win a long time ago to encourage attacking football and make teams go for the win. This change will make a draw more valuable than it ever has been before.

I think you're being rather unfair to some teams who punched above their weight in the Euros. The worst teams in the tournament were some of the more traditionally stronger footballing nations: as well as the aforementioned Russia & Ukraine there was also Austria, the Czech Republic, Sweden & Romania, all of whom finished bottom of their groups & didn't manage a single win between them. We were also treated to the "spectacle" of Portugal, possibly the least convincing winners of any major tournament in living memory, only managing a solitary victory within 90 minutes in their 7 matches. I'm not sure that we can point to the larger amount of teams as the cause of that malaise though, some of the worst performers (Austria, England, Czech Republic, Northern Ireland) finished top of their qualifying groups.

"The lesser teams won’t play football in the traditional manner, they will purely set up to defend for a draw tho then luck the shootout." Defending & not conceding goals is as important as attacking. If powerful teams can't break down a minnow team that means the powerful team is not as good at doing its job as the minnow team is at doing its job. That's the beauty of Knock-Out football. That's why this system will have the whole world riveted for 80 matches. You can't afford to look away for a minute.

But it rewards extremely negative football with this setup. The lesser teams won't play football in the traditional manner, they will purely set up to defend for a draw tho then luck the shootout. Hell, they might spend years in preparation to stifle out 0-0 draws, because they will be worth more in this system. You could have a situation where a team wins its group without scoring a goal having got 6 points. I'm all for more teams, but do it properly. Do a longer tournament if necessary. Don't have garbage football on display.

Sure. That's the possibility with every tournament that has a Knock Out format. But, some people are complaining that the quality of the extra teams will be so weak there will be blowouts. Now we're worried about weak nations actually matching it with the big nations? That's the beauty of tournament football. Things are not always as they seem.

But the problem with the groups of 3 is that penalty shootouts would be required in the group stage to stop collusion. Which may not be horrible, but means lesser nations will park the bus in the hope of a penalty lottery.