North America became a stronger candidate to host an expanded World Cup in 2026 after the FIFA Council agreed on Friday that European and Asian nations should not bid again so soon after Russia hosts the 2018 World Cup and Qatar has the 2022 tournament.

"That has changed the landscape [of the 2026 contest] a little bit," said U.S. Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati.

The United States are expected to bid either alone or together with Canada and Mexico.

FIFA prefers co-hosting among regional neighbours, and a three-way bid could be more popular if the tournament grows to 40 or 48 teams under president Gianni Infantino's plans.

FIFA has targeted 2020 for its member federations to choose the 2026 host.

FIFA is expected to decide in January whether they will expand the World Cup from a 32-team tournament to as many as 48 countries.

Gianni Infantino, elected to the post in February to replace Sepp Blatter, said the governing FIFA Council had been “rather positive” in a meeting Thursday about a possible expansion. “The level of quality of football is increasing all over the world,” he said. A vote will be taken when the council meets again in Zurich in January, he said.

Infantino pledged during his campaign for the presidency to expand the World Cup to 40 nations, but he suggested in a speech in Colombia this month that the number rise to 48. 

Infantino’s desire to “optimize” the structure of the World Cup was part of his vision for a so-called FIFA 2.0 plan that was unveiled Thursday by the organization, which has spent much of the last six years mired in scandal.

Gianni Infantino has suggested the World Cup can be opened up to 48 countries by the 2026 edition.

The proposal to expand the competition to 40 teams was part of Infantino’s manifesto when he was elected to succeed the disgraced Sepp Blatter this year.

The idea would mean almost a quarter of Fifa’s 211 members qualifying for its flagship tournament and further increase the demands on the host nation. 

These are ideas to find the best solution. We will debate them this month and we will decide everything by 2017,” said Infantino. “They are ideas which we put forward to see which one is the best.”

The World Cup was expanded from 24 teams to 32 in 1994 but most proposals for further expansion involve convoluted mathematical contortions or leave open the possibility of making the group stages unbalanced.