A group of 13 World Cup nations has strongly criticised UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin over reported comments suggesting that the expanded 48-team tournament contains “completely uninteresting” matches.
In a joint statement released yesterday, the football associations said they “respectfully but firmly reject” remarks attributed to Ceferin in Slovenian newspaper Delo.
The UEFA chief reportedly argued that increasing the World Cup from 32 to 48 teams had diluted the quality of the competition.
Responding to the comments, the federations stressed that every World Cup fixture carries significance for players and supporters alike.
“For our countries, there is no such thing as an unimportant World Cup match,” the statement said.
“To suggest these matches are somehow less important fails to recognise the efforts, sacrifices and aspirations of players, coaches, clubs, football leaders and supporters across the world.”
The statement was signed by a diverse group of nations, including debutants Cape Verde, Curacao and Uzbekistan, as well as African representatives Algeria, DR Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia.
The federations insisted that every team had earned its place at the tournament on merit and deserved respect.
“Every team has earned its place. Every supporter has the right to dream. Every match carries meaning for millions around the world,” the statement added.
When approached for comment, UEFA did not directly deny the reported remarks, instead referring AFP to a recent interview with Ceferin in which he did not discuss the World Cup’s expansion.
