FIFA announces that 2026 World Cup will have 104 games with 48 teams taking part

FIFA on Tuesday announced that the 2026 World Cup will have a total of 104 games instead of the traditional one of 64 due to the format being expanded to have 48 teams participating in the competition.

The 2026 edition, which will be co-hosted by the United States of America, Canada and Mexico will be the first edition of the tournament where 48 teams will be taking part.

FIFA announced the decision on Tuesday in a statement where they said based on a thorough review which considered many factors, the FIFA council had approved the proposed amendment to the 2026 edition’s format from 16 groups of three to 12 groups of four. The top two teams and the eight best third-placed teams will progress to the round of 32.

“Based on a thorough review that considered sporting integrity, player welfare, team travel, commercial and sporting attractiveness, as well as team and fan experience, the FIFA Council unanimously approved the proposed amendment to the FIFA World Cup 2026 competition format from 16 groups of three to 12 groups of four with the top two and eight best third-placed teams progressing to a round of 32.

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,” read the statement.

The tournament last year in Qatar, which consisted of 32 teams, had a total of 64 matches being played and was completed in 29 days. The last time Mexico and the US hosted a World Cup, only 24 teams participated in it.

The World Cup has had 32 teams since the 1998 edition, with eight groups of four and the finalists playing a total of seven matches. Now the finalists for the 2026 edition will have to play a total of eight matches.