The president of the South American Football Confederation (Conmebol), Alejandro Dominguez, stated this Monday that it is a matter of "justice" that South America has six direct places for the 2026 World Cup and one more via the playoffs. The leader maintained that the region is the cradle of the best football on the planet and defended the new allocation of slots approved for the next World Cup, which will be held in Mexico, the United States, and Canada.

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During an event organized by the Paraguayan Football Association (APF) in the city of Ypane, Dominguez was emphatic in explaining his position. “For me, this is fair because the best football in the world is played and born, or at least, born, played, and exported in South America,” the CONMEBOL president told local officials and authorities.

The Paraguayan official asserted that there is criticism from Europe regarding the South American qualifying system, although he avoided mentioning specific countries. According to Dominguez, some “friends in Europe” are paying close attention to what is happening in the region and have expressed their dissatisfaction with the number of South American teams that will qualify for the World Cup. “They are complaining because we are going to have 6, 5, or 7 teams qualified,” he noted.

Response to criticism from Europe

Far from showing concern, Dominguez responded with a direct message to those who question the format. “I recommend that they not worry so much about South America. I recommend that those countries worry more about themselves and win their matches, because only those who win qualify, as the Albirroja team did,” he stated, referring to Paraguay's return to a World Cup after a 16-year absence.

The president of CONMEBOL went even further and maintained that it would be “fair” for all ten South American teams affiliated with the organization to participate in the World Cup, considering that they would all raise the level of the competition. “It’s nice to hear that they criticize us, it’s nice to hear that in the other part of the world, as it was the other way around before,“They complain about our qualifying system,” he added. Dominguez's statements come amid an international debate about the allocation of spots following the expansion of the World Cup to 48 teams. On November 13, Italy's coach, Gennaro Gattuso, stated that the qualification criteria should be reviewed, questioning why South America has six direct berths out of a total of ten teams, in addition to a seventh team with a playoff option. Gattuso made these statements before Italy's 2-0 victory against Moldova in the European qualifiers, a result that was not enough to secure direct qualification for the 2026 World Cup. The Azzurri will have to play in the playoffs, prolonging the absence of the four-time world champions, who have not played in a World Cup for 11 years.