World Cup 2026: Are FIFA about to destroy a winning formula?

France's victory last night means we're down to just two more games at this year's World Cup.

Sunday's final holds massive promise with Lionel Messi looking to write the perfect ending to his time with Argentina by winning the game's biggest prize.

France can become the first team since Brazil in 1962 to do back to back titles, and in doing so, continue Europe's domination of the tournament stretching to Italy's win in 2006.

It's around this time every tournament that we start to consider the future, and whether the Republic of Ireland might finally return to the biggest stage, after being spoiled between 1990 and 2002.

But what does the road to Canada, Mexico and the United States in 2026 hold?

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The group stages in Qatar, with 32 teams involved, delivered exciting football with only Canada and the hosts mathematically out of the running for a last-16 spot ahead of the final round of matches.

It is the last time that a finals will be run off in this way, with 16 more teams - 48 in total - to be able to qualify for the tournament in 2026.

As things stand it will mean 16 groups of three, with a guarantee of two games - rather than the current three - for qualified teams. But it also means the final group game taking place as a stand alone fixture, greatly increasing the risk of dead rubber games.

At the 1982 World Cup, a match between West Germany and Austria - later dubbed the Disgrace of Gijon - saw the Germans scoring early before going on to win 1-0 in a result that suited both