"Following a thorough consultation process with all the relevant stakeholders, it was concluded that under the current circumstances such a proposal could not be made now," FIFA said.
FIFA on Wednesday shrugged off any possibility of expansion from 32 to 48 teams at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
On January 10, 2017, FIFA Council unanimously decided in favour of expanding the FIFA World Cup to a 48-team competition as of the 2026 edition, which will be co-hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico, the Xinhua news agency reported.
After being presented with a thorough feasibility study on the increase of the number of teams from 32 to 48 at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, the FIFA Council acknowledged the study's conclusion that expanding the tournament to 48 teams was feasible during a meeting in Miami this March, provided that neighbouring countries hosted some matches with Qatar as the main host country.
"In line with the conclusions of the feasibility study approved by the FIFA Council at its last meeting, FIFA and Qatar have jointly explored all possibilities to increase the number of participant teams from 32 to 48 teams by involving neighbouring countries at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
"Following a thorough and comprehensive consultation process with the involvement of all the relevant stakeholders, it was concluded that under the current circumstances such a proposal could not be made now," FIFA said in a statement.
The FIFA also noted that the two sides "have once again explored the feasibility of Qatar hosting a 48-team tournament by in particular lowering certain key FIFA requirements."