BEVERLY HILLS, JULY 25, (THEWILL) – FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, on Monday, revealed that he hopes Africa gets two more spots at the World Cup if his proposal for the tournament to be expanded to 40 teams goes through.
“I believe for the 2026 World Cup, we should have 40 teams and out of the additional eight teams we should have at least two more African teams,” Infantino told reporters in Abuja.
“We are discussing this and I hope I will be able to convince everyone as well.
“I foresee Nigeria as a bedrock for the development of the game in Africa, however infrastructure, stability and security are needed to make this happen.
Infantino, who arrived Abuja on Sunday on a two-day visit to Nigeria, accompanied by new FIFA Secretary-General, Fatma Samoura, also met with Presdient Muhammadu Buhari who he described as a friend of football.
The FIFA President was at the State House at about 1.50 p.m. accompanied by Samoura; the Minister of Youths and Sports, Solomon Dalung; and the President of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Amaju Pinnick.
Infantino, who was elected in February this year, also met with 18 federation Presidents across Africa and also attended the final of a national youth tournament.
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