Fifa 'abandons plans' to expand 2022 World Cup to 48 teams

Fifa has reportedly dropped its plans to expand the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to 48 teams and host a number of games in neighbouring countries.

President Gianni Infantino, who had been pushing for the tournament to be expanded from 32 teams, has allegedly accepted that his proposal would be too challenging to implement.

According to the Associated Press, Fifa had been exploring if logistical and political complexities could be overcome to expand the tournament from 32 to 48 teams, which would have required at least one more country being used in the Persian Gulf to accommodate an additional 16 matches in the region.

A Fifa internal report in March concluded that the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia cannot join as co-hosts unless they restore the economic and travel ties with Qatar that were severed two years ago.

Fifa concluded that it lacked to the time to prepare a country to host the extra games.

The regional diplomatic crisis left neutral Kuwait and Oman as the viable options. Oman has said it isn't keen on hosting games at the Fifa showpiece.

Additional reporting by AP