New Delhi: UEFA is likely to support FIFA’s plans to expand the Club World Cup to 48 teams from the next edition of the tournament in 2029. This move came as a sign of improving relations between UEFA and FIFA presidents, Aleksander Ceferin and Gianni Infantino, reports The Guardian.
The European football governing body had earlier opposed the plans to expand the Club World Cup due to a threat to the Champions League, but is now planning to support UEFA in return for an agreement that the tournament will not be held in a two-year cycle.
Earlier, Real Madrid proposed that the FIFA Club World Cup should be held every two years during talks with the global football governing body in Miami in June 2025. Recently, the Spanish club has ended their five‑year legal battle with UEFA by formally pulling out of the European Super League.
The same website also reported earlier that FIFA is open to expanding the Club World Cup from 32 teams following the conclusion of the last edition in the USA, for more participation of the big European clubs after Manchester United, Liverpool and Barcelona failed to qualify for the tournament in 2025.
The FIFA president also said in a speech at the general assembly of European Football Clubs in Rome last October that expansion was on the agenda, saying that the global body was working to see how they can make the Club World Cup bigger, even better, even more impactful.
European clubs to benefit from Club World Cup expansion
UEFA was one of the major obstacles in FIFA’s plan, but another challenge remains for the global football governing body, which is facing a legal action from the lobby group European Leagues. The matter has been taken to the European Commission, which is related to the international match calendar, including decisions regarding the Club World Cup.
While some UEFA officials remain concerned that the huge financial rewards of the tournament will not have a good effect on European football, an expansion to 48 clubs is regarded as less disruptive than making it a two-year event.
The final details have not been agreed upon yet, but the European clubs would get massive benefits from the expansion, with the number of UEFA spots likely to be increased from 12 last year to 16 in 2029. Chelsea received £85m from the tournament’s £774m prize pool for winning the Club World Cup last year, and adding more European teams would have an impact on the Champions League.