With the World Cup fast approaching, the tournament has largely been accepted as the most unprecedented and politically intertwined tournament in most people's living memories, despite the highly controversial and ethically questionable 2022 Winter World Cup in Qatar.
With the World Cup fast approaching, the tournament has largely been accepted as the most unprecedented and politically intertwined tournament in most people's living memories, despite the highly controversial and ethically questionable 2022 Winter World Cup in Qatar. While matters off the pitch have rightly been grabbing the news headlines in the build-up to this summer's tournament, the 23rd FIFA men’s World Cup also has significant football-related talking points.
In what is the first World Cup to have three host nations (the United States, Mexico, and Canada), it has expanded from 32 teams to 48. While from a basic point of view, this can be seen as a positive, offering opportunities for more nations to compete on the world stage and giving fans potential life-long memories, the decision to significantly increase the number of participants has received much backlash for several reasons.
Firstly, with the increase in the number of nations, the quality of football is very likely to drop at the biggest stage. It’s been widely accepted that international football’s quality has not been near the level of certain club competitions, such as the Champions League and the big five European leagues, over the last two decades. This expansion will likely create even flatter and more predictable outcomes, especially in the early rounds, as more than two-thirds of teams from the group stage will progress through to the knockouts, something that could lose the eyeballs of neutrals and the overall spectacle of the competition.
There is also concern about the already stacked fixture scheduling that raises safety concerns for players' welfare, which could also further drop the standards of the game. These safety concerns are not helped by the fact that this tournament is hosted by three countries. For example, if Brazil tops their group stage and goes all the way to the final, they would travel 6000 miles through the course of the 39-day tournament. With the increase in teams, there will be 108 matches throughout the 39 days, as opposed to the 64 games that a standard 32-team tournament offers. To put it into context, there will be more group-stage games this tournament (72) than the entire tournament of a usual 32-team World Cup (64). The extra load of games and intense travel for these top athletes significantly increases the risk of muscular injuries, something that has already been a big talking point in top-level professional football in the last year, with the ever-increasing fixture schedule.
Logistically, 48 teams make the tournament more confusing, too. 32 teams create a perfect setup of 8 groups of 4, with the top two of each group making it into the knockout stages of the last 16. This new setup means that there are 12 groups of 4, with the first two of each group automatically qualifying for the knockouts, and 8 of the best 3rd place teams of the 12 groups will also qualify for the “last 32” knockouts. Too many, this system is messy, unneeded, and will dilute the tournament's reputation and quality.
On a brighter note, there will be 4 countries making their World Cup debut this summer ( Uzbekistan, Jordan, Cape Verde, and Curaçao). Curaçao is officially the smallest nation to ever qualify for the tournament, with a population of just about 185,000 people, a record previously set by Iceland with their qualification in 2018. The entire population of the Caribbean island could fit in just two of Dallas’ AT&T Stadium, which will be hosting multiple games throughout the tournament.
World Cup 2026 will also likely be the last dance for both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. With the two sharing the stage at the pinnacle of football for almost 20 years, it will be an emotional goodbye for those who have watched the beautiful game, no matter which side you are on in the GOAT debate. The little boy from Rozario had his fairytale moment in Qatar 2022. In what is his last chance, it is now or never for Ronaldo to grab hold of the one thing that is missing in his trophy cabinet in the twilight of his career, something that he would no doubt admit to being the sweetest.
There is no doubt that this World Cup has the potential to be the worst, with the expansion, travel logistics, ticket prices, and the ongoing political developments outside of football. However, with less than two months until the tournament commences, it’s hard not to get excited about a summer full of football, ready to create folklore for the history books. The opening game begins on 11 June, where hosts Mexico take on South Africa in Mexico City Stadium.