FIFA, the governing body for global soccer, is considering a plan that would increase the number of teams in the 2030 World Cup to 64 for a one-off expansion to mark the centenary of the event, according to four people with direct knowledge of the discussions.
The proposal has drawn the interest of Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA, upending a tournament that already figures to be unwieldy and complicated because it will be played across three continents for the first time in its history.
The World Cup is the most lucrative and most watched event in sports, bringing in billions for FIFA, but the coveted nature of the competition has led to battles among nations to host it, as well as widespread allegations in the past of corruption.
The decision to award the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia was criticized by good governance organizations, after FIFA changed its own rules to allow the country to effectively secure rights without facing any competition.
Mr. Infantino has already expanded the World Cup once during his nine-year tenure, bringing the number of teams up to 48 from 32 at the next edition in 2026, which will be mostly played in the United States but also include matches in Mexico and Canada.
The proposal for a 64-team tournament came at a meeting that was drawing to a close and had reached the section of the agenda earmarked for “miscellaneous” issues when a delegate from Uruguay, Ignacio Alonso, made the proposal, reading out a prepared speech in English.
Three of the people with knowledge of the meeting, which was held via video, described the reaction from others present as stunned silence, and the proposals will almost certainly be met with a huge outcry.
But they cautioned that FIFA was likely to be guided by financial and political benefits as much as sporting ones when it came to taking a decision on the matter.
Mr. Infantino, who has expanded his influence over the organization and the sport since he become the head of FIFA, described the proposal as an interesting one that should be analyzed more closely, according to the four people.
FIFA did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The last time it considered a major change to the World Cup, staging the event every two years instead of four, it formed a committee that worked on the project for a year before quietly mothballing the idea.
Expanding the World Cup to 64 teams — more than a quarter of FIFA’s overall membership — could render many of the regional qualification competitions for the event meaningless.
Already, as many as seven teams out of 10 from South America can qualify for the 2026 World Cup, and further expanding the World Cup could reduce its appeal for broadcasters.
There are also significant logistical issues. The tournament, with 32 teams, already takes about a month and would almost certainly run longer in an expanded format. The 48-team tournament in 2026 will feature a record 104 games.
The World Cup was first played in Uruguay in 1930, and it was the official from that country who made the proposal.
Under Mr. Infantino, FIFA has been constantly exploring ways to alter its marquee event, efforts that have usually been met with blowback from other parts of the soccer industry.
At one point, Mr. Infantino supported the effort to play the World Cup every two years rather than four, and a furious reaction — largely from European soccer’s governing body — forced backers of the idea to shelve it.
Saudi Arabia secured the event after FIFA announced that Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina would join Morocco, Spain and Portugal in hosting matches for the 2030 tournament, narrowing the field for potential future hosts in 2034.
Mr. Infantino secured the FIFA presidency in 2016 following a corruption scandal that led to the ouster of most of its previous leadership. He ran on a campaign of promising more funds to FIFA’s 211 members and a promise to increase the size of the World Cup. He now spends most of his time in Miami and has grown close to President Trump, who recently described Mr. Infantino, who he invited to his inauguration, as the “king of soccer.”
Mr. Infantino has spent most of his time in his office devising ways to leave a lasting legacy. As well as expanding the World Cup for both men and women, he has created a new World Cup for club teams — rather than national ones — that will be staged for the first time this summer in the United States.
Those efforts have led to a dispute with leagues and player unions, which have filed legal complaints in Europe.
