FIFA would grant Africa 9 slots in its proposed World Cup 48-team format billed to take in 2026.
6
direct slots each will be awarded to CONCACAF and CONMEBOL, eight to
the AFC and 16 to UEFA, while the OFC will receive one direct slot. The
two remaining teams will be decided by a six nation play-off.
The
body responsible, Bureau of the FIFA Council has recommended UEFA
receive 16 slots in the new 48-team World Cup format, which starts from
2026, while proposing a six-team play-off to decide the final two
places.
The
Bureau, which comprises FIFA president Gianni Infantino and the
presidents of the six confederations, met in Zurich and agreed on the
slot allocation for the expanded event. The decision will now be
submitted to the FIFA Council for ratification in May.
This
proposed allocation includes automatic qualification for the host
nation, with its slot taken from the quota of its confederation, while
the play-off tournament for the two unallocated slots will feature one
team per confederation – with the exception of UEFA.
One
additional team from the confederation of the host country will qualify
for the play-off, and of the six teams involved two will be seeded
based on the FIFA World Ranking. The seeded teams will play the winners
of knock-out matches between the four unseeded teams to determine who
will reach the World Cup.
The
play-off tournament will be held in the country hosting the main event
with November 2025 suggested as the date for the first edition.