FIFA are set to expand the World Cup to an extra 40 matches from the 2026 tournament, Sky News has revealed.
The World Cup was originally planned to increase to 80 matches in North America, however it will now grow from 64 to 104 matches and is set to be approved in a meeting of the governing body’s ruling council in Kigali, Rwanda. Adding matches will help FIFA reach its target of over £9 billion in revenue and will also solve format issues for the event.
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The tournament, co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, will have a different format after FIFA enlarged the tournament from 32 to 48 teams. Rather than 16 groups featuring three teams each, FIFA will now have 12 groups each with four countries.
Teams that reach the final will now have to play eight matches each, rather than the seven played by Argentina and France in Qatar.