FIFA has formally announced Saudi Arabia as the host country for the 2034 World Cup of men’s football. Twelve years after neighbouring Qatar hosted the 2022 edition, where Argentina won the prestigious trophy, Saudi Arabia will become the second Middle Eastern country to hold an important football event. Spain, Portugal, and Morocco will co-host the 2030 edition, with one-off matches in three South American nations, the football governing body said in the Meanwhile.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino announced the decision following a virtual extraordinary Congress. Each World Cup in 2030 and 2034 had only one bid, and both were enthusiastically confirmed.
“We are bringing football to more countries, and the number of teams has not diluted the quality. It enhanced the opportunity,” Infantino said about the 2030 World Cup.
In 2030, the World Cup will be played on three continents, and the South American countries of Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay will host the centennial celebration games.
Introducing the hosts for the next two editions of the @FIFAWorldCup! 🏆
— FIFA (@FIFAcom) December 11, 2024
Morocco, Portugal and Spain will host in 2030, with centenary celebration matches in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.
Four years later, Saudi Arabia will host the FIFA World Cup 2034™. pic.twitter.com/WdOEdNEVxH
The 2030 edition will begin with a match in Uruguay, which hosted the 1930 tournament. It will be followed by two games in Argentina and Paraguay before the remainder of the tournament is played in the three primary co-host countries.
It will be the first time Portugal, Paraguay, and Morocco will host FIFA World Cup matches, with Uruguay hosting the initial edition in 1930. Meanwhile, Argentina and Spain have hosted the tournament in the past.
In 2023, FIFA announced that the 2034 World Cup would be held in Asia or Oceania, with the Asian Football Confederation supporting Saudi Arabia’s bid.
Australia and Indonesia had also discussed a combined proposal, but they dropped out.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s win will set off a decade of examination of labour laws and the treatment of workers, mainly from South Asia. These workers will help build and repair 15 stadiums, as well as hotels and transportation networks, in preparation for the 104-game tournament.
One of the stadiums is scheduled to be 350 meters (yards) above the ground in Neom, a future metropolis that does not yet exist, while another named after the crown prince will be built atop a 200-meter cliff near Riyadh.
FIFA announced that both bids would go without opposition in 2023, leaving little room for doubt.
The Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) said on Tuesday that it would vote against awarding hosting rights by acclamation and criticized FIFA’s bidding procedure as “flawed and inconsistent”.
