Bhaichung Bhutia believes in expanding the FIFA World Cup to 64 teams could improve India’s chances of qualifying for the tournament, but warned that such a move could come at the cost of the overall quality of the competition.FIFA is considering increasing the number of teams in the 2030 World Cup from 48, which was shown in the 2026 edition, to 64. The proposal was officially put forward by the South American football body CONMEBOL in April last year.No decision has yet been made, but FIFA president Gianni Infantino recently said the governing body will review the proposal after the ongoing World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Defending champion Argentina will face Spain in the final this Sunday in New York.The 2030 World Cup will be held in Spain, Portugal and Morocco, while the opening three matches will be played in Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay to mark the centenary of the tournament. Uruguay hosted the first FIFA World Cup in 1930.Speaking to news agency PTI, former India captain Bhaichung Bhutia said that a bigger World Cup would naturally give countries like India a better chance of reaching football’s biggest stage.“From an Indian football fan’s point of view, I think it is a welcome step to have more teams. I am not saying that India will qualify but India will have a better chance of qualifying if they go up to 64 from 48,” Bhutia said.At the same time, he emphasized that the expanded tournament alone will not solve the problems of Indian football.“But that doesn’t mean the country doesn’t have to do any work. We still have to get our system, structure, grassroots development right and produce more players, bring more kids to football.”Bhutia said that India should first build a stronger football system and follow the example of countries that consistently develop talent through youth football.“India should focus on qualifying U-17, U-20 World Cups, then the senior team, then only we have a chance like Uzbekistan and Morocco did. They (Uzbekistan, Morocco) qualify for U-17 and U-20 World Cups regularly despite being small countries.”While Bhutia acknowledges the potential benefits for countries chasing qualification, he also believes that the tournament itself may lose some of its competitiveness if the number of teams is increased.“But yes, from the perspective of the general football fans around the world and the value and excitement of the World Cup, the quality of football, I think, will definitely decrease when you have 64 teams playing in the World Cup,” said the former India captain.