Women's Soccer World Cup Could Be Held Every Two Years, FIFA President Says

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Events preceding the Women's World Cup final soccer match between the United States and the Netherlands in Decines, France, in 2019. FIFA President Gianni Infantino has suggested that the FIFA Women's World Cup could be held every two years instead of every four years. / AP

After a record-breaking year in 2019 for women's soccer, FIFA President Gianni Infantino suggested Friday that the FIFA Women's World Cup could be held every two years instead of every four.

Infantino addressed the annual FIFA Congress virtually and emphasized the need to build on the momentum of success that the FIFA Women's World Cup saw last year.

"We don't want to copy what the men are doing. We want something specific for women and for the women's game," Infantino said, commenting that out-of-the-box thinking is crucial for the continued growth of women's soccer. "We need to get those creative juices flowing."

FIFA already had promised to invest $1 billion in women's soccer over the next few years, and he said these plans are unaffected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2019 Women's World Cup in France attracted 1.12 billion TV viewers worldwide and more than 260 million spectators, he said.

"This was a lot more than the Super Bowl franchise, for example," he said.

The next FIFA Women's World Cup is scheduled for 2023 and will include 32 teams, eight more than in 2019.

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