UEFA want to put a European team in every single group of the 2026 World Cup
The 2026 World Cup will be a more inclusive one, expanding from a 32 team format to 48 teams, and UEFA want that inclusivity to ensure none of Europe's teams compete with each other in the opening rounds.
Speaking at the UEFA Executive Committee in Nyon, Switzerland, President Aleksander Ceferin has said the European governing body will ask FIFA for at least 16 places in the expanded 48-team World Cup.
With the tournament shifting to a three-nation group stage format, Ceferin says UEFA would like to see a European nation in each separate group. "We think it's realistic to ask for 16 slots plus another condition that each European [team] is in a different group," said the Slovenian lawyer, who's lead UEFA since September of 2016. "I think all 16 can qualify for the second round."
FIFA will confirm continental entry quotas for the 2026 World Cup at meetings in Bahrain in May, but UEFA's request may come with some opposition from rival federations who believe those extra spots should go to them.
Still, with UEFA sending 13 teams to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, it's hard to see FIFA not awarding them an additional three teams, especially with the caliber of teams on hand in Europe. Inclusivity is the main focus for the new format, but having the very best teams is paramount, and that likely means acceding to UEFA's request.
