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FIFA’s Council has unanimously approved expanding the Women’s World Cup from 24 teams to 32 for 2023 and has reopened bidding to host the tournament but made no mention of changing prize money.FIFA said Wednesday the decision was made remotely.Nine national associations had expressed interest in hosting and were due to submit their formal bids by Oct. 4: Argentina , Australia, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa and South Korea, which could bid jointly with North KoreaUnder the new timetable, any national association has until December to make a bid. FIFA expects a bid evaluation report next April and a decision the following month.FIFA’s statement made no mention of prize money. The U.S. received $4 million of a $30 million prize pool for winning the World Cup on July 7 , a small percentage of the $38 million from a $400 million pool that France got for winning the 2018 men’s World Cup. FIFA has increased prize money for the 2022 men’s World Cup to $440 million and FIFA President Gianni Infantino said July 5 that he was proposing FIFA double the women’s prize money to $60 million for 2023.After the U.S. won the women’s final in Lyon, France, fans in the stadium chanted “Equal Pay!”Infantino said in a statement that “this is the time to keep the momentum going and take concrete steps to foster the growth of women’s football” and “it means that, from now on, dozens more member associations will organize their women’s football program knowing they have a realistic chance of qualifying.”“We have a duty to do the groundwork and strengthen women’s football development infrastructure across all confederations,” he said.The Women’s World Cup started with 12 teams in 1991, expanded to 16 in 1999 and 24 in 2015.The men’s World Cup was played with 13-16 teams from 1930-78, 24 from 1982-94 and has been contested with 32 since. It is due to expand to 48 in 2026, when the tournament is co-hosted by the United States , Mexico and Canada.Infantino also has proposed a Women’s Club World Cup and creating a women’s world league. FIFA is also doubling the funding being made available to women’s soccer in the next four-year cycle to $1 billion. Major League Soccer officials met Thursday with supporters’ groups from the Seattle Sounders, the Portland Timbers and the Independent Supporters Council to discuss a new league policy that bans fan displays deemed as political.At the heart of the issue is display of the Iron Front symbol, first used by an anti-Nazi paramilitary group in the 1930s, of three arrows pointed down to the left.MLS maintains that the symbol is political because it has been appropriated by antifa, loosely organized groups of antifascists that sometimes engage in violence. Supporters’ groups maintain the symbol represents opposition to fascism and persecution — a human rights issue, not a political stance.The new league policy was adopted this season. But supporters’ groups have challenged it by continuing to display the Iron Front symbol on flags and banners.There have also been protests, with fans remaining silent for the first 33 minutes of a match between the Sounders and the Timbers. A number of supporters from both clubs have been issued warnings and a handful of Portland fans were banned for three games.The meeting between the two sides on Thursday in Las Vegas did not produce a resolution, but a conference call was scheduled for Tuesday.MLS President and Deputy Commissioner Mark Abbott issued a statement that reaffirmed the league’s “commitment to the values of inclusion and diversity, including opposition to racism , fascism and homophobia and to ensuring that there is no place for repugnant hate speech in MLS stadiums.”“During today’s meeting, the league proposed a collaborative process for reviewing its Fan Code of Conduct in a way that is inclusive of a cross-section of industry experts and national advocacy groups along with the leaders of its supporter groups,” Abbott said. “The goal is to have that process completed prior to the start of the 2020 season.”He also said the league would evaluate its treatment of the Iron Front flag for the remainder of the 2019 season.The supporters’ groups and the ISC released statements saying they looked forward to “continuing the conversation” on Tuesday.Timbers owner Merritt Paulson praised the efforts of the two sides to come together.“We have always been advocates for soccer supporters uniquely having a right to exercise their voice on matters of human rights at games,” he said.The league’s new fan code of conduct, implemented this season, prohibits “using (including on any sign or other visible representation) political, threatening, abusive, insulting , offensive language and/or gestures, which includes racist, homophobic, xenophobic, sexist or otherwise inappropriate language or behavior.”Earlier this season, a fan waving a Trump 2020 flag was removed from Providence Park.
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