FIFA has proposed 9 slots for CAF, African football umbrella body, in the expanded 48-teams World Cup starting 2026.
The Bureau of the FIFA Council sitting in Zurich, Switzerland today agreed on a proposed slot allocation, which gives UEFA, European football confederation, the biggest allocation with 16.
“The recommendation will now be submitted for the ratification of the FIFA Council, whose next meeting is scheduled for May 9th in Manama, Bahrain,” FIFA stated.
CAF and UEFA are the largest confederations with 55 members each.
During the 39th Ordinary General Assembly of CAF in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, CAF made it known they prefer 10 slots.
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.
