The 2022 tournament in the Gulf state will now be played with 32 nations taking part. The study, seen by AFP, also claimed that a Qatar World Cup with 48 teams would generate "between $300-$400 million (265-354 million euros) of additional income". The news comes after Europe's top football clubs said in March they would boycott an expanded 24-team Club World Cup -- also backed by Infantino -- which is planned to take place in June and July 2021, replacing the Confederations Cup tournament. FIFA has dropped the plan to expand the 2022 tournament despite recommending in March that the number of teams should be raised to 48 for that tournament, ahead of the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Expanding the competition for the 2022 tournament was always a complicated proposition.

Source: The Nation Bangkok May 22, 2019 23:26 UTC