[Source: Reuters]

Set-piece prowess may be reshaping club football, but FIFA’s Technical Study Group said on Monday that dead-ball dominance is unlikely to define this year’s World Cup, ​largely due to limited preparation time for international teams.

Speaking at a FIFA media ‌roundtable a month before the expanded 48-team tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico, TSG members discussed emerging trends, including Arsenal-style set-piece specialisation.

Premier League leaders Arsenal – dubbed the “set-piece kings” – last month smashed the record ​for most goals scored from corners in a single Premier League season.

“I’d be interested ​to see how the other teams approach this,” said Gilberto Silva, a 2002 ⁠World Cup winner with Brazil and former Arsenal midfielder.

“We have seen this season, especially ​in the Premier League with Arsenal. In the last few years, corner kicks and long balls ​were not used as much compared to when I played, when they were more common. In the last few years, the game has developed, with teams building from the goalkeeper.

“But I’m not so sure the World ​Cup will be the same, because you don’t have much time to prepare a team ​for these tournaments. Of course, it can be a weapon and teams will use it, but not as ‌the ⁠main one.

“I expect tight games, with a lot of practical aspects and teams looking to exploit transitions to break through.”

Last year’s Club World Cup in the U.S., which served as a dress rehearsal for the showpiece tournament, also highlighted the potential impact of scorching heat.

“In general, the Club ​World Cup showed a ​very similar level of ⁠intensity in the matches compared to the 2022 World Cup when we looked at some of the key games,” said Tom Gardner, Lead ​of Football Performance Insights.

“So I’m sure heat may be a factor in ​how teams ⁠manage that. But we don’t expect to see on a physical level very similar outputs to 2022, as we did at the 2025 Club World Cup.”

The TSG will provide analysis of all matches ⁠at ​the World Cup. Guided by FIFA Chief of Global ​Football Development Arsene Wenger, the group includes figures such as Silva, Juergen Klinsmann and Pablo Zabaleta, and is supported by ​a team of analysts and data specialists.