FIFA grants six automatic 2030 World Cup spots, forcing England into Euro 2028 qualifiers

FIFA announced that six nations will receive direct entry to the 2030 World Cup: Spain, Portugal and Morocco as primary hosts, and Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay each hosting a single opening match. The decision means the other hosts – England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland – must compete in the qualifying round for Euro 2028 despite staging many tournament venues.

Separately, FIFA is evaluating a further expansion of the World Cup to 64 teams for the centennial 2030 edition. CONMEBOL president Alejandro Domínguez backs the proposal, while UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin has called it a "bad idea." An expanded format would raise the total matches from 104 to 128 and add at least a week to the tournament schedule, requiring major changes to qualification structures across all confederations.