Overview

• South America’s confederation renewed its push in New York with Gianni Infantino, with the presidents of Paraguay and Uruguay backing a 64-team centenary event.
• FIFA described the session as a working meeting and said member proposals will be examined, with no change to the 48-team plan confirmed.
• Moving to 64 teams would raise the tournament to about 128 matches and would likely force major changes to format, scheduling and hosting beyond the current Spain‑Portugal‑Morocco plan with three South American openers.
• UEFA, CONCACAF and the AFC have publicly opposed the idea, warning of diluted quality, disrupted qualification structures and severe logistical challenges.
• Former Germany coach Joachim Löw issued fresh criticism over player welfare and tournament length, as FIFA also noted uneven rest windows of roughly 11–12 days versus 5–6 for teams traveling from South America.