KIGALI, Rwanda: FIFA will maintain the status quo with four-team groups at the expanded 2026 World Cup in Canada, Mexico and United States.

Speculation has posited the possibility of three-team groups but that was always doubtful because of the opportunities for manipulation.

The 2026 finals will be stepped up from from 32 to 48 teams and the decision on group sizes means the tournament will comprise 104 matches, including a new round-of-32 stage.

The trophy at stake

A FIFA statement, after its council meeting in Kigali ahead of Thursday’s congress, said: “The revised format mitigates the risk of collusion and ensures that all the teams play a minimum of three matches, while providing balanced rest time between competing teams.”

An additional round-of-32 knockout stage means teams will have to play eight matches to win the tournament, compared with seven last year in Qatar. The final will be played on July 19, 2026.

The newly-approved men’s international match calendar between 2025 and 2030 means the

date by which clubs must release players will be May 25, witj exceptions allowed for any players involved in the finals of the European club tournaments.

The women’s international match calendar keeps its six international windows per year and includes the women’s Olympic football tournament, which will take place from July 25 to August 10, 2024.

FIFA Council also approved the access list for the 32-team Club World Cup, which will take place every four years from June 2025.

Teams who win their confederation’s top tournament in “the four-year period of the seasons ending in 2021 and 2024” will qualify where they have enough places.

Europe has 12 places in the new tournament and Chelsea and Real Madrid, who won the Champions League in 2021 and 2022 respectively, have already secured their spots.

The other qualifying teams from each continent will be determined “by a club ranking based on the same four-year period”.

There will be a cap of two clubs per country with the exception being if more than two teams from the same country win their confederation’s premier tournament over the qualification period.

FIFA also wants to keep the annual Club World Cup but now “between the winner of the UEFA Champions League and the winner of intercontinental play-offs between the other confederations.”

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