International Football
FIFA BOSS PROPOSES 32-TEAM WOMEN’S WORLD CUP IN 2023
BY LIAM MORGAN
FIFA President Gianni Infantino is hoping to bring his preference for expansion to the Women’s World Cup as he claimed he wants the 2023 tournament to grow from 24 teams to 32.
Infantino said he would put the proposal to the FIFA Council and member associations for approval but warned the global governing body would have to “act quickly”.
The bidding process for the 2023 World Cup may have to be re-opened, Infantino said, to accommodate the possibility of an extra eight teams.
FIFA received nine bids for the 2023 Women’s World Cup, including a joint candidature from North and South Korea.
The FIFA Council is due to select the host at its meeting in March 2020.
The suggestion came as part of a five-point plan from Infantino as FIFA attempts to capitalise on the success of this year’s World Cup in France.
Infantino said the tournament prize money for 2023 would likely be doubled from the $30 million (£24 million/€26.7 million) on offer at the 2019 edition to $60 million (£48 million/€53 million).
The figure is still considerably less than the $400 million (£319 million/€356 million) prize pot for the 2018 men’s competition, where winners France pocketed $38 million (£30 million/€34 million).
The $30 million available at this year’s Women’s World Cup was also doubled from $15 million (£12 million/€13 million) in 2015.
The FIFA President raised the possibility of creating a Women’s Club World Cup and Nations League for national sides, which would use a similar format to the one used by UEFA in the men’s game.
“It’s a great thing, this World Cup, but then people forget, they do other things ‒ it is our job to make sure that they don’t forget and we don’t just say ‘see you in four years,’” Infantino said.
“That’s why I propose to the FIFA Council and to all our members ‒ who have to embrace the development of women’s football.
“We have already more than doubled the prize money for the World Cup this year, but we will double it again for the next World Cup ‒ I am very confident that we can do that.
“We will have to act quickly to decide if we are to increase it for 2023.
“If we do, we should reopen the bidding process to allow everyone to have a chance or maybe co-host.
“Nothing is impossible.”
Infantino has already overseen the expansion of the men’s World Cup from 32 to 48 teams for the 2026 tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
The FIFA President failed with an attempt to grow the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to 48 nations because of diplomatic tension in the Gulf.
– insidethegames
Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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