The 2026 World Cup finals in the United States, Canada and Mexico are set to feature 104 games, including a new last-32 stage, with plans for three-team groups poised to be abandoned.
The finals will be the first to feature 48 teams, with the Fifa Council set to approve the format at a meeting in Kigali, Rwanda, on Tuesday. It is understood there will be 12 groups of four rather than 16 groups of three as initially proposed. The group winners and runners-up, along with the eight best third-placed teams, would advance to the last 32.
It is expected the new format will not mean the tournament…
