The World Cup has long served as a barometer for how football evolves. Goal-line technology and vanishing spray debuted in 2014, the video assistant referee arrived in 2018 and the 2022 tournament introduced five substitutions along with a concussion sub, according to the source text.
The 2026 World Cup brought several further alterations, including the first expansion since 1998 to 48 teams and adjustments around ticketing, hydration breaks and tiebreakers. The source notes that some moves reflected commercial interests while others produced tangible benefits for the competition.
On the broad question of expansion, the tournament earned high marks. Historical concerns about lopsided results—El Salvador being outscored 9-0 in 1970 and, four years later, Haiti and Zaire being outscored 14-2 and 14-0 respectively—were raised again before the competition. In practice, the larger field produced more storylines: debutants such as Congo DR drew with Portugal and pushed England in the knockout rounds; Curaçao took a point from Ecuador, and Cape Verde advanced to the knockout stage and nearly eliminated Argentina. Two other debutants, Jordan and Uzbekistan, did not fare as well but still participated at the highest level. The source gives the expansion a grade of A+.
However, the specific logistics of a 48-team format created awkward outcomes. With 12 groups of four and 32 spots in the knockout stage, two-thirds of third-place teams advanced. In this tournament a team with three points and a positive goal differential typically advanced, and only two teams that won a match failed to progress. That low threshold encouraged some teams to play for draws and dulled the potential drama on final group days, despite moments such as Algeria’s late deception against Austria.
Overall, the source concludes that expansion broadened the field and produced more narratives, but the chosen format introduced competitive quirks that reduced tension in some group-stage matches.
