Did the 2026 World Cup expansion to 48 teams take you by surprise? Have you speculated on how big the World Cup could become?
The Roar sent its humble right-side hack, 70s Mo, forward in time to the year 2050 to interview the incumbent FIFA president, Innit Phormyself, who has just called a press conference.
Mo: Good Morning, Innit. Can you tell us the exciting news?
IP: Hi there, Mo. Yes, I would like to announce that the 2066 World Cup will be expanded to 256 teams.
Mo: Wow, that is a surprise. This announcement is not just a knee-jerk reaction to ensure China qualifies?
IP: Certainly not. China did make the last World Cup you know.
Mo: That’s right. They qualified via the new groupings. What was it called again?
IP: The CFC – Chinese Football Confederation.
Mo: But there was only one team in that confederation.
IP: It doesn’t matter. They still had to top their group.
Mo: But tell me, there are only 211 countries playing football. How did you come up with 256 teams?
IP: Here, have a look at this sheet.
Mo: Hmm. Looking at the names on this list… Pluto, Neptune, Trumptopia… surely these are planets, barely even colonised yet.
IP: Our boffins predict in 100 years there will be 10 billion TV sets in the outer rim of the solar system. It’s never too early to go after new markets. Besides, we need to get in first before rugby and cricket.
Mo: With all these teams, won’t there be a dilution in skills. Aren’t you concerned with quality?
Innit: Of course broadcast quality is important. All matches from the 2066 World Cup will be broadcast in XUHD – to maximise advertising revenue.
Mo: The 2066 World Cup will be a logistical nightmare. Is there any country on Earth that can even afford to host it?
IP: No. That’s why we took the decision to host the tournament on Mars.
Mo: What? Why would you do that? Cheap labour?
IF: It would be of lasting benefit to the Martian economy.
Mo: Aren’t you worried about labour exploitation? What about the #MartiansArePeopleToo movement?
IF: Don’t believe all the fake news you read. You should only pay attention to FIFA-sanctioned fake news.
Mo: Let’s turn our attention to the tournament itself. The 2066 World Cup is scheduled to run for 322 days. Surely people will get bored halfway through and the European clubs won’t like it. Doesn’t this seem overly long to you?
IP: Absolutely not. It fits perfectly into the season.
Mo: The football season?
IP: No. The ratings season.
Mo: What about drawn games, how will they be decided?
IP: Ratings.
Mo: Say again?
IP: It’s simple. In the event of a draw the team with the highest TV ratings will go through. Look, we considered penalty kicks but the outcome is too unreliable. We have to pay the bills you know.
Mo: Some pundits have suggested that the 256-team World Cup is just a money-making exercise. How do you respond to that?
IP: It’s just nonsense. We want to grow the world game. Our 256 markets… err members are all that we are concerned with.
Mo: Some have also suggested that there is a whiff of corruption and that FIFA officials are greedy and arrogant with their noses planted firmly in the trough.
IP: Another fabrication. Look, all my neighbours on the Cote d‘Azur are FIFA officials. They are the loveliest people you could hope to meet.
Mo: With so many chateaux in the south of France owned by FIFA officials, is there any truth to the rumour that FIFAland might enter a team in the World Cup?
IP: We are always open to new markets… err members.
Mo: But that would create an odd number of teams. Which team would you kick out to make way?
IP: Personally, I would boot Uranus.
Mo: That’s all we have time for. Thanks, Innit Phormyself, it’s been a pleasure.
IP: Treasure?
Mo: Pleasure. Good night folks!
OK, the above “interview” is a bit of a cartoon, highlighting the perceived negative aspects of the expanded World Cup.
Many people, myself included, have been quick to form an opinion but the 2026 World Cup is still ten years away and to be fair to FIFA they have given us a long time to get used to it and perhaps 24 hours is too early to judge. Who knows, the expansion to a 48-team tournament might prove to be the most enlightened decision FIFA ever made.
Patrick Effeney
Editor
Corruption! Conspiracy!
Magnus M. Østergaard
Roar Guru
Venice can claim Atlantis status the rate they are going!
pauly
Guest
I can't see Quebec separating, and making itself vulnerable, while Donny Trump sits in the White House. The whole reason Quebec is a part of Canada is because they decided the British crown was less of a risk than the puritan republic to the south. I think it's worked out well for them.
Stuart Thomas
Expert
Mate I see my stupidity now, there are eight Hawaiian Islands, at his rate we could crack three hundred. Let's not forget that Venice could also claim island status.
Stuart Thomas
Expert
Hi Al, are you suggesting it should have been rejected and only made the cut because the eds liked it?
Evan Askew
Guest
I look forward to the match between the gepids and the lombards. The gepids Will be keen to avenge their defeat at the hands of the lombards in 567 ad by making the lombard coaches daughter drink from a cup fashioned from the matchball.
BrainsTrust
Guest
You can probably find another 20 just in the Pacific and the rest from elsewhere , Micronesia is a collection of island states, and can be split up into at least 4. The island of Yap in Micronesia would be particularly suited to FIFA membership, they are famous for their huge stone money, with discs of stone a couple of meters in diameter. You would need a crane instead of a brown paper bag.
northerner
Guest
You are definitely not thinking laterally enough. I see Quebec separating from the rest of Canada. Then Western Canada will secede from Canada. Then British Columbia will secede from Western Canada. Then Quebec and Newfoundland will have a war over Labrador, which will declare independence from everyone. See, that's at least four more, in just one pretty peaceable country. What might be achieved in India, China, Indonesia, or Belgium boggles the mind. And we haven't even discussed potential separatist movements on Mars.
BigAl
Guest
Ah ! so that's how this piece got up
Patrick Effeney
Editor
I enjoyed this Mo, thanks.
70s Mo
Guest
Cheers Stuart. As per my last paragraph when I first heard of the 48 team tournament I thought no way - but after a bit of reflection I'm starting to warm to the idea. The knockouts from the Round of 32 onwards should be awesome
70s Mo
Guest
Catalonia, Greenland - actually Catalonia is not beyond the realms of possibility. Hopefully the world will stil be in one piece by then! Cheers for reading Nemesis
Stuart Thomas
Expert
North and South Island of New Zealand will get us one more. Tassie? Norfolk Island. If we think laterally I think we can get there.
Stuart Thomas
Expert
Loved this Mo, well done.
mattq
Guest
Nem, who were we arguing on here a long time ago about the FIFA World Cup includes the qualifiers. I can't remember what that argument was about but I recall is was quite amusing.
Nemesis
Guest
Small point, but it's important. The FIFA World Cup consists of two stages: a) the preliminary stage (often called World Cup Qualifiers) b) the final competition (the 1 month tournament held every 4 years) So, if we are talking World Cup the 2014 World Cup had 203 teams participating. Can we get to 256 by 2066? May be possible if more countries split up as they have in the past 25 years. For example before the fall of communism, USSR was a single Member of Fifa. Now, that 1 Membership has morphed into 15 members: Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Lithuania, Moldavia, Latvia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Armenia, Estonia, Turkmenistan. Under Tito, Yugoslavia was a solitary Fifa member. Now that 1 membership has morphed into: Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Kosovo, FYR Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia. Who knows, by 2066, Australia may split into 8 independent nations.
Pauly
Guest
Considering FIFA's membership is 209. Where are the other 47 teams coming from? Are there 47 separatist movements likely to succeed in the next 40 years?
Newie
Guest
Gold!
70s Mo
Guest
I think it is quite possibly heading that way- maybe one preliminary round then a 128 team knockout - perhaps a random draw to make it interesting
Mister Football
Roar Guru
I think 256 teams would be too many. But there is merit in a 128 team WC, run in a traditional cup knock-out format, until you end up with the final two teams.