World Cup nations slam UEFA chief for ‘disappointing’ 48-team criticism

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin has been criticised by football governing bodies in Asia, Africa and the Caribbean for reportedly saying that the expanded 48-team FIFA World Cup has led to many “uninteresting” matches.

The football associations of Cape Verde, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Curacao, Haiti, Jordan, Uzbekistan, Algeria, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia said in a statement on Sunday that they “respectfully but firmly reject” Ceferin’s comments.

Cape Verde, Curacao, Jordan and Uzbekistan qualified for their first World Cup this year, while DR Congo and Haiti reached football’s top event for the first time since 1974. Curacao lost to Germany 7-1 on Sunday in their tournament opener.

The 2026 tournament is the largest ever, featuring 48 nations, up from 32 in previous iterations.

“For our countries, there is no such thing as an unimportant World Cup match,” the statement said. “Football does not belong to a select group of nations. Its strength comes from its universality.”

“For many countries, participation in the FIFA World Cup is not only a sporting achievement. It is a moment that inspires a generation, accelerates football development and creates memories that last a lifetime.”

The statement did not quote the comment by Ceferin. But he was quoted by the Slovenian websites Zurnal 24 and Dosi as remarking on the subject last Monday at a conference in Ljubljana.

“We have a huge number of matches that are completely uninteresting,” he said, according to Zurnal 24.