{"id":8490,"date":"2026-05-21T16:32:39","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T16:32:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=8490"},"modified":"2026-05-21T16:32:39","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T16:32:39","slug":"fifas-big-experiment-may-have-made-the-world-cup-too-big-for-its-own-good","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=8490","title":{"rendered":"FIFA\u2019s big experiment may have made the World Cup too big for its own good"},"content":{"rendered":"

By JAMES ROBSON, AP Soccer Writer<\/strong><\/p>\n

A supersized World Cup with more teams, more games and even more host nations than ever before leaves a big question hanging over the biggest sporting show on earth: How much is too much?<\/p>

Read more At one Kentucky bar, young Republicans wrestle with their disappointment in Trump and their party<\/a><\/p>\n

The latest edition of the World Cup \u2014 co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico \u2014 will push the boundaries of how far the most popular sport on the planet can go before it reaches breaking point.<\/p>\n

Be it the limits of physical endurance as top players threaten strike action over an ever-congested calendar, the attention span of fans in an age of seemingly wall-to-wall televised soccer or the exorbitant prices people are prepared to pay for tickets \u2014 or even parking \u2014 the pressure points are numerous going into the June-July tournament.<\/p>\n

With an expanded 48-team format \u2014 up from 32 \u2014 played out over nearly six weeks, some say the tournament risks a dilution of FIFA\u2019s most prized product.<\/p>\n

\u201cI personally think it\u2019s kind of taken a little bit of the excitement and quality away from the tournament and it\u2019s almost like it doesn\u2019t start until the round of 32,\u201d former U.S. forward Clint Dempsey told The Associated Press.<\/p>\n

The expanded format has effectively removed the chance of several top teams being drawn in the same group \u2014 known as a \u201cgroup of death\u201d in soccer vernacular.<\/p>\n

Much of the jeopardy traditionally seen in the early stages of the tournament has been removed until the round of 16 because the eight best third-place teams also advance to the round of 32.<\/p>

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\u201cThe biggest danger is dilution of spectacle,\u201d said Jonathan Wilson, author of The Power and the Glory: A New History of the World Cup.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe FIFA gets away with it this time because it\u2019s the first expanded tournament and because ticket prices are enormous. But eventually broadcasters and fans may stop caring if the tournament doesn\u2019t become interesting until the last 16,\u201d Wilson said. \u201cA World Cup game should feel almost must-watch. \u2026 Nobody is watching 90 out of 104 games. It\u2019s just too much.\u201d<\/p>\n