Key tournament decisions made by FIFA Council

The FIFA Council met in advance of the 74th FIFA Congress in Bangkok, Thailand, and adopted several key decisions, particularly in relation to the future of women’s football, for which the international match calendar was unanimously approved.

Additionally, following the FIFA Council’s decision in December 2022 to approve the strategic principle of introducing a FIFA Women’s Club World Cup™ and subsequent extensive consultation with the confederations and other stakeholders, it was proposed that the inaugural edition of the competition be contested by 16 teams in January-February 2026. The tournament will be held every four years. Further details will follow in due course.

To facilitate the continued global development of women’s clubs and based on requests from the confederations to provide ample playing opportunities on a yearly basis, it was further proposed that an additional FIFA women’s club competition be organised in non-FIFA Women’s Club World Cup years as from 2027.

In relation to the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027™, in line with the voting procedure approved by the FIFA Council on 14 March 2024, it was confirmed that the joint bid by the Royal Belgian Football Association, the Royal Netherlands Football Association and the German Football Association, as well as the single bid by the Brazilian Football Association, have been submitted to the 74th FIFA Congress for a final decision.

The FIFA Council also confirmed the following tournament updates:

The first edition of the event will take place in the Philippines.

The slot allocation will be as follows: AFC: 4; CAF: 5; Concacaf: 4; CONMEBOL: 4; OFC: 2; UEFA: 5.

The slot allocation was confirmed as follows: AFC: 9; CAF: 10; Concacaf: 8; CONMEBOL: 7; OFC: 3; UEFA 11.

At the request of the Qatar Football Association, Qatar will host the tournament in 2025, 2029 and 2033, which will follow the principle of an invitational competition not included in the International Match Calendar.