Wenger in Davos: Why is expanding the World Cup to 48 teams a salvation?

Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger He shared his opinion on expanding the roster of World Cup participants to 48 national teams.

“Playing for the national team is an extraordinary experience. While a football player defends the honor of his country, he also faces great pressure: the fear of failure, the risk of disappointing the fans and not living up to expectations.

It takes tremendous mental toughness to be responsible to an entire nation. The best teams need athletes who can cope with this pressure and represent the interests of the new generations.

For a long time, the world championship was a tournament in which representatives primarily from Europe and South America participated. It needed to be offered to more countries, especially Asia and Africa. Football has taken on a global dimension: people all over the world are discussing this game.

Looking to the future, we must ensure that within a century everyone has at least the chance to dream of victory in the World Cup. Increasing the number of participants from 32 to 48 was an important step on this path.

The first fourteen days of the tournament are the most inspiring time: The whole world comes together, each athlete is proud to represent their country, and a sense of community emerges. This is a large-scale collective celebration.

With 104 matches and longer distances, the World Championship will be a serious mental test. Winning will require a lot of mental preparation: the coaching staff and staff will need to maintain unity and motivation within the team for weeks.

Penalty shoot-outs will become almost inevitable in the knockout matches and the mental factor will also come to the fore here,” Wenger said in his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos.