Friday, March 29, 2024

Africa to get 9 slots at new 48 team World Cup

Africa has been allocated 9 slots at the new look 48 team World Cup.

The Bureau of the FIFA Council – comprised of the FIFA President and the presidents of each of the six confederations – convened this Thursday at the Home of FIFA in Zurich and agreed on a proposed slot allocation for the FIFA World Cup™ as of the 2026 edition.

The recommendation will now be submitted for the ratification of the FIFA Council, whose next meeting is scheduled for 9 May in Manama, Bahrain, two days prior to the 67th FIFA Congress.

After 10 January, when the FIFA Council unanimously decided on expanding the FIFA World Cup to a 48-team competition, FIFA, the confederations and the Member Associations engaged in a consultation process, which resulted in the proposal recommended by the Bureau of the Council. According to this proposal, the split of direct berths is as follows:

Slot allocation*

·         AFC: 8 direct slots

·         CAF: 9 direct slots

·         CONCACAF: 6 direct slots

·         CONMEBOL: 6 direct slots

·         OFC: 1 direct slot

·         UEFA: 16 direct slots

* The host country would also automatically qualify for the FIFA World Cup, and its slot would be taken from the quota of its confederation. In the event of co-hosting, the number of host countries to qualify automatically would be decided by the FIFA Council.

Play-off tournament for two remaining slots
The above allocation accounts for 46 of the 48 participating teams. The proposal reviewed by the Bureau of the Council includes a play-off tournament involving six teams to decide the last two FIFA World Cup berths:

–          One team per confederation with the exception of UEFA + one additional team from the confederation of the host country;

–          Two teams to be seeded based on the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking. The seeded teams will play for a FIFA World Cup berth against the winners of the first two knockout games involving the four unseeded teams;

–          Tournament to be played in the host country(ies) and to be used as a test event for the FIFA World Cup;

–          Existing play-off window of November 2025 suggested as tentative date for the 2026 edition.

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25 Comments

  1. Eish, maybe it will be easy for Zambia to qualify because it looks like somehow we always find a away to miss out, think of Togo in 2006, South Africa in 1998.

    • More like qualifying for the African cup…hence the need for FAZ to plan for a better rating for Chipolopolo, because I believe the best nine rated teams in Africa will lead the groups and so you avoid the likes of Ghana, Nigeria, the Arab countries, etc…the days of playing Tanzania, Zimbabwe are now long gone if we are to break in the top ten FIFA rating in Africa!!

  2. Rabbish,even Lesotho and the like stand a chance to qualify for me the World Cup will lose it’s competitiveness should the council approve this useless motion all in the name of someone to get popular and stand a chance to be voted again

  3. Concacaf 6 slots?…I get Europe and Asia and maybe Africa but North and Central America…there has to be a more rigorous way to vet the regional participants…I think we can use the continental competitions first off. Say the winner of AFCON gets a direct spot at the world Cup and the other slots contested on a home/ away basis to fill the remaining spots. This gives incentives to make AFCON more competitive with a direct bearing on World Cup qualification. This is a win-win model.

  4. I as for me I don’t support this idea of expanding the teams I will rather have 30teams that are competitive than having 48teams without competition because like Discipline has said even useless teams like lesontho,swaziland malawi will be qualifying as a result they will be less competition

  5. What a feat! This is what I had written about in my book, “The Cry of Mother Africa!” I am vindicated! Thank you Lord! We deserved more slots! South America, Europe all had more slots and Africa with about 54 states had had two, then four! Now we need to work hard and win that cup in the next 20 years!

  6. Yes this is progress.
    Reduce UEFA slots to 10 and redistribute the remainder. European football is dull and defensive. Its time for more flair… maybe this will enable different tactics to emerge and for teams to play more attacking football.

  7. Despite all those slots on the ‘silver platter’, will still find means and ways of missing out dear gentlemen. Remember when we were awarded three full points when Sudan fielded an ineligible player? Ghana went on to surpass us and qualified… that’s why i aint excited about this news.

  8. Its just fair that a continent of 52 countries gets an increase in the number of participants. Whether Zambia qualifies now because of the changes is another issue. We are not the only country in Africa excited with this news and so many countries including those you are calling minnows will up their game in order to try and take advantage of this opportunity.

  9. Kamanga is sleeping on duty. Judging with what is happening in zambia at the moment it realy shows that he is a vision less leader. How can you can you run a league of foreigners. This man was voted into power to develop zambian football and what is happening for now things are now worse than before. Foreigners are invading the the zambian league willingly. The whole nation witnessed it when tp mazembe played against buildcon. If faz doesnot take an immediate action. There will be no future under this businessman cum football adminstrator. The future of the under 17 and 20 boys looks bleak. The zambian football was moving in a clockwise direction but now is the other way round. What the under 20 have achieved now its not an overnight achievement what most of people think. They boys were all identified at airtel rising star. Then they graduated into the under 17 teams and others played at youth games. Most of the boys they are playing top flight football. This is now the current under 20 we have. After under twenty world that will be the end. Fans they are going to cry joyless.

  10. Kamanga is sleeping on duty. Judging with what is happening in zambia at the moment it realy shows that he is a vision less leader. How can you can you run a league of foreigners. This man was voted into power to develop zambian football and what is happening for now things are now worse than before. Foreigners are invading the the zambian league willingly. The whole nation witnessed it when tp mazembe played against buildcon. If faz doesnot take an immediate action. There will be no future under this businessman cum football adminstrator. The future of the under 17 and 20 boys looks bleak. The zambian football was moving in a clockwise direction but now is the other way round. What the under 20 have achieved now its not an overnight achievement what most of people think. They boys were all identified at airtel rising star. Then they graduated into the under 17 teams and others played at youth games. Most of the boys they are playing top flight football. This is now the current under 20 we have. After under twenty world that will be the end. Fans they are going to cry joyless. It seems king kalu had gone with all football ideas.

  11. foreigners bring on competition for a example countries that has a lot of foreigners is likely to develop e.g u a e states south africa and mnay others
    don’t ne stereo type. even countries with a lot of foreign national are doing fine. France is a good exampl

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