FIFA has revealed that fans support its idea for a World Cup to be staged every two years from 2028.
The World Football’s governing body says it undertook a feasibility study into the controversial proposal to change the current four years setup of the World Cup into a biennial format. According to them, they discovered that most football fans favour their new proposal.
The FIFA survey questioned 23,000 people in 23 countries across all six confederations and discovered that of that number, 15,000 expressed interest in a more regular World Cup format.
‘Based on initial results, the following conclusions can be drawn,’ FIFA said in a statement.
‘The majority of fans would like to see a more frequent men’s FIFA World Cup; of this majority, the preferred frequency is biennial. There are considerable differences between the so-called traditional markets and the developing football markets, and younger generations in all regions are more open and interested in change than older generations.’
FIFA said the survey was done by IRIS and YouGov online in July.
Despite these claims, the proposal of a biennial World Cup remains a controversial proposal among most of the leading groups in sports.
Previously, 58 fan groups from around the globe expressed their opposition, while the European Leagues and UEFA are also against the idea.
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin suggested that his confederation and it’s South American counterpart, CONMEBOL, could boycott the World Cup if it became more frequent.
The proposal is the brainchild of former Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, who is now FIFA’s head of global football development.
The Frenchman has consulted with former players and coaches and is keen on seeing the idea become a reality.
FIFA also has started consulting with former players and coaches. They have reportedly spoken to 80 high-profile figures in the game, who are all in support.
Among those backing the idea are the Brazilian Ronaldo, former Everton and Australian striker Tim Cahill, and Manchester United’s legendary goalkeeper and Denmark international, Peter Schmeichel.
