UEFA has unveiled the bidding process for Euro 2028, the tournament which would fall the same year as FIFA’s first biennial World Cup if those plans come to fruition.

The proposals for a World Cup every two years have been strongly opposed by UEFA, as well as the majority of European leagues including the Premier League.

Arsene Wenger, FIFA’s head of global development, suggested the first men’s biennial World Cup could take place in 2028, putting football’s world governing body on a potential collision course with UEFA, who have invited nations to bid to host the European Championships that year.

UEFA said 24 teams will take part in the 2028 tournament, although that could yet be increased to 32.

Joint bids that are “geographically compact” have been welcomed by UEFA, but automatic qualification will only apply to a maximum of two teams, in case multiple associations are looking to share hosting.

Interested parties must have 10 stadiums, with at least one boasting capacity of at least 60,000.

The bidding timeline sees national associations given a deadline of 23 March 2022 to confirm their interest. The bidders will then be revealed by UEFA on 5 April, and they will then have a year to submit their final bid dossier before the hosts are announced in September 2023.

The process outlines UEFA’s firm intentions to hold the competition despite FIFA’s plans, which UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said would “kill football”.

Ceferin told global sports media “We can decide not to play in it. As far as I know, the South Americans are on the same page. So good luck with a World Cup like that.

“I think it will never happen as it is so much against the basic principles of football. To play every summer a one-month tournament, for the players it’s a killer.”

A 58th career hat-trick from Cristiano Ronaldo helped Portugal stroll to a 5-0 home win over Luxembourg in Group A of World Cup qualifying on Tuesday (Oct 12).

The treble, which meant Ronaldo became the first man to net 10 international hat-tricks, takes his tally to 115 international goals from 182 caps as he continues to pull away as the top men’s international goalscorer of all-time.

Victory ensures Portugal remain a point behind leaders Serbia, who moved onto 17 points with a 3-1 home win over Azerbaijan, with a game in hand and superior goal difference.

Portugal had the game all but won within the first 18 minutes.

Ronaldo struck twice from the penalty spot before his Manchester United team mate Bruno Fernandes made it three as he fired in following good work from Bernardo Silva.

The forward then missed two gilt-edged chances either side of the break as he sought a third, before being denied a spectacular hat-trick goal when Anthony Moris kept out his acrobatic overhead kick.

Portugal did not have to wait long for their fourth, however, as midfielder Joao Palhinha headed in from the resulting corner with just over 20 minutes to go.

Ronaldo was not to be denied as the hosts pushed on, netting three minutes from time with a header from close range.

Next month Fernando Santos’s Portugal side travel to Ireland before then hosting Serbia in what could be a winner-takes-all fixture to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Andy Murray plans to skip next month’s Davis Cup Finals because he is “not sure he deserves to play in that team”.

Murray, 34, was knocked out of the Indian Wells Masters in the third round on Tuesday night in a 6-4 7-6 (7-4) defeat by Alexander Zverev.

He won 11 points out of a possible 12 to help Great Britain win the Davis Cup for the first time in 79 years in 2015.

“I’ve given a lot to the Davis Cup, and sometimes to my own detriment physically,” he told BBC Sport.

“The same thing happened last time I played Davis Cup at the end of 2019. I know there was coronavirus, but I was struggling with that really up until September time the following year.”

Murray suffered bruising to his pelvis in the 2019 Finals in Madrid, missed the Australian Open and was not able to play again until the tours resumed, after a pause for the pandemic, the following August.

He has been playing better in recent weeks – pushing third seed Zverev close in Indian Wells and taking Stefanos Tsitsipas to five sets in the first round of the US Open. But he is not sure that is good enough for selection into captain Leon Smith’s GB squad.

“I also don’t feel right now I would be playing, either,” he said. “Obviously that would be up to Leon, but I’m not sure I deserve to play in that team.

“Cam [Norrie] and Dan [Evans] have had a great year. Liam Broady’s in and around the top 100 now and we’ve got very strong doubles as well.

“Right now, I’m not planning on playing the Davis Cup and with the late finish to it, and early departure to Australia, with my schedule between now and the end of the year, I am going to have to rest and take a break and give my body a chance to breathe.

“And I want to make sure in the off season I get to spend as much time with my family as I can because I have been away from that recently and that will be case when I go to Australia as well.”

Murray – currently ranked 121st in the world – has accepted a wildcard to play in Antwerp and Vienna over the next two weeks, but says his schedule will depend on his body and his levels of fatigue.

Great Britain will play France and the Czech Republic in Innsbruck in the group stages of the Davis Cup on 27 and 28 November, but the competition does not finish in Madrid until 5 December.

That is just three weeks before players are expected to have to travel to Melbourne to begin some form of quarantine before the Australian Open.

‘I had opportunities’

Murray said he was “disappointed” following his defeat by world number four Zverev, but added he could take positives from the match.

He raced to an early break before Zverev settled into his play and took the first set.

There was a repeat in the second set, as Murray took the first break then allowed Zverev to take back control, only for the German to display some uncharacteristic mistakes as former world number one Murray forced a tie-break.

From there, 2020 US Open finalist Zverev was able to take the crucial points, but was quick to pay tribute to his opponent after the win.

“He’s the only one of the Big Four that I hadn’t beaten yet, so I’m happy that I’ve done it,” he said.

“I always stayed in the match, even though I was down a break in both sets. I always knew I had a chance. The second set was an extremely high level from both of us. It could have gone both ways.

“It was a fantastic match. Andy played extremely well, maybe as well as he’s played since the [hip] surgery. I hope he continues playing the same way, because tennis did miss him for a long time and it’s good to have him back.”

It is the first time since 2016 that Zverev has reached the Indian Wells fourth round, where he will play French 14th seed Gael Monfils.

“The positive for me to take from it is I had opportunities again,” said Murray.

“I didn’t feel like I played a great match and still had chances, so that’s positive. But I’m disappointed because I want to be winning these matches. I haven’t in the past few months.”

Elsewhere, Greek world number three Tsitsipas will play Australian Alex de Minaur in the fourth round after recovering from a set and a break down to beat Fabio Fognini 2-6 6-3 6-4.

American Taylor Fritz caused an upset by cruising past Italian fifth seed Matteo Berrettini 6-4 6-3, while there were wins too for Nikoloz Basilashvili and Karen Khachanov.

In the women’s draw, the second, third and fourth seeds, Iga Swiatek, Barbora Krejcikova and Elina Svitolina, were all knocked out in straight sets, but Angelique Kerber and Victoria Azarenka progressed to the quarter-finals.