How FIFA鈥檚 World Cup expansion may make the games more global than ever
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FIFA鈥檚 governing council voted unanimously on Tuesday to expand World Cup competition from 32 teams to 48, the first change to the Cup鈥檚 structure since 1998.
The change, which is set to go into effect in 2026, will聽split the first round of competition into聽16 groups of three teams each, with two out of the three countries advancing to the knockout contests. Eighty matches will be played instead of the current 64.聽
The league expects the expansion to generate an extra $1 billion in revenue from broadcasting, ticket sales, and sponsorships.聽
Just where the extra spots will go 鈥撀爓hich federations and from which part of the world 鈥撀爃asn鈥檛 been announced yet. Many expect them to benefit countries in Africa and Asia that were shut out of the competition until the mid-1970s, and still tend to appear on the global stage more fleetingly than the traditional European and South American powerhouses.
The disparity carries the聽geopolitical overtones of that earlier period, particularly in Africa, where nations were just starting to emerge from under European colonialism. But FIFA鈥檚 latest vote illuminates how the council鈥檚 internal politics, combined with the organization鈥檚 profit motive, may be destined to push the biggest tournament of the 鈥渦niversal game鈥 toward greater inclusivity.聽
鈥淭he continent that really benefits, and has really suffered the most from the Europeans, is Africa,鈥 says Kirk Bowman, a professor in soccer and global politics at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
With the formation of the African Football Confederation (CAF) in 1957, African nations began to contest what was then a rigidly Eurocentric FIFA; in 1966, several of them boycotted the Cup after Africa and Asia were offered a single combined slot.
The turning point came in 1974, with the ascent of Brazilian businessman Joao Havelange to the head of FIFA after persuading African and Asian electors 鈥 FIFA鈥檚 council operates on a 鈥渙ne nation, one vote鈥 principle 鈥 with a charm offensive that underscored ethnic and sociopolitical commonalities between South America and Africa, and called for FIFA to invest in sports infrastructure and development in the Third World, 聽by University of Ulster sports sociologist Paul Darby.
Since then, African soccer has blossomed. And that鈥檚 been good for FIFA, especially through sponsorships and advertising, says Agbenyega Adedze, an Illinois State University professor of history who has written about intersections of soccer and politics in Africa.
鈥淚f you look at ads in African countries, there are African players selling beer, selling cars, et cetera,鈥 he tells 海角大神. 鈥淓verything stops for the World Cup, in African countries.鈥
鈥淕iving more opportunities to African teams, they鈥檒l prevail. You saw the performance of Africans in World Cups in previous years,鈥 he adds.
Their appearance is part of the legacy of Mr. Havelange, who expanded the tournament from 16 teams to 32 鈥 a move that won him support from聽the organization鈥檚 non-European electors.
Some believe FIFA鈥檚 current president, Gianni Infantino, is trying a similar gambit.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 primarily about Infantino preparing for a second and third term,鈥 Dr. Bowman tells the Monitor. 鈥淗e鈥檚 trying to get votes from all those small islands of the Caribbean. Those are the places that turn the election.鈥
The powerhouses from Europe and South America aren鈥檛 all so happy with the new arrangement: European clubs, because they train and pay the bulk of salaries for the top World Cup players; and South America, because the continent鈥檚 bottom-tier teams are often more competitive than top-tier teams from other regions.
"If [African and Asian countries] can generate another billion dollars off human capital provided by European teams, then they鈥檙e getting a big win," he says. "But I think it's all much more about power itself."
This report contains material from Reuters.