Good news for the Chinese national football team? It is reported that FIFA is accelerating the plan to expand the next World Cup to 64 teams! The decision could be made as early as two weeks later.

According to the latest report from renowned British Sky News journalist Rob Harris on July 31, FIFA may decide as early as August 14, two weeks from now, whether to expand the next World Cup to 64 teams.

It is reported that Sky News obtained a FIFA document yesterday. The document shows that FIFA officially plans to accelerate the process of expanding the World Cup to 64 teams. This briefing, used to initiate the consultation process, mentions that FIFA may make some form of decision as early as August 14.

FIFA is considering the strategic impact of further expanding the World Cup format beyond its current scale. Therefore, FIFA wants to commission an independent institution to evaluate whether expanding the number of participating teams from 48 to 64 starting from the 2030 World Cup is feasible and how to implement it, and to analyze the impact of this move on the event's value proposition and the overall football ecosystem.

A comprehensive assessment will be conducted from the perspectives of brands, broadcasters, audiences, media companies, football associations, continental confederations, leagues, clubs, and other stakeholders in the sports industry, regarding the changes brought by the expansion.

The recently concluded World Cup was expanded to 48 teams for the first time. Although the increased number of matches and extended schedule sparked considerable controversy, the tournament achieved unprecedented commercial success, which gave FIFA President Gianni Infantino a strong idea to expand the tournament for two consecutive editions.

Previously, CONMEBOL was also the most loyal supporter of the World Cup expansion, but UEFA and others held a strong opposing stance. If the next World Cup is expanded to 64 teams, the Asian region may get 12 slots, which would undoubtedly significantly increase the chances of the Chinese men's football team qualifying for the World Cup.