South American teams to join Nations League in 2024, says UEFA VP

Warsaw, Dec 17, 2021 (AFP) - South American nations will be able to join the UEFA Nations League from 2024, UEFA vice-president Zbigniew Boniek has said, in a move that would undermine FIFA's planned biennial World Cup.

"This is the last Nations League in this format," Boniek said in an interview with the Polish sports news portal Meczyki published on Thursday.

"From 2024, CONMEBOL will join the Nations League. I don't yet know in what format," he said.

"It's being worked on," he said, adding that "this will make the Nations League even more important".

CONMEBOL is the continental governing body of football in South America, bringing together 10 countries including Argentina and Brazil.

Contacted by AFP, a UEFA spokesperson said that "UEFA is working on a number of projects with CONMEBOL, including a joint Nations League, but nothing is finalised and no decisions have yet been made".

Boniek, a Polish football legend who played for Juventus and Roma in the 1980s, also coached the national team.

Appointed chairman of the Polish football federation in 2012, he left the post this year to join UEFA.