Fans celebrate as Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, announces Saudi Arabia as the host country for the 2034 FIFA World Cup on December 11, 2024.
Francois Nel | Getty Images Sports | Getty Images
World soccer’s governing body FIFA confirmed on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia will host the Men’s World Cup in 2034, while the 2030 edition will be held in Spain, Portugal and Morocco, with one-off tournaments in three South American countries.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino announced the decision after a virtual special congress. There was only one bid for the 2030 and 2034 World Cups, and both were confirmed by acclamation.
“We are taking football to more countries and the number of teams does not diminish the quality. It actually increases the opportunities,” Infantino said of the 2030 World Cup.
A joint proposal from Morocco, Spain and Portugal would see the 2030 World Cup take place in six countries across three continents, with Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay hosting celebratory matches to mark the tournament’s centenary.
Uruguay hosted the first World Cup in 1930, and Argentina and Spain have also hosted the event. Portugal, Paraguay and Morocco are all hosting the event for the first time.
Four years later, Saudi Arabia will become the second Middle Eastern country to host the quadrennial World Cup, 12 years after neighboring Qatar hosted the 2022 World Cup.
In 2023, FIFA stated that the 2034 World Cup will be held in Asia or Oceania, and the AFC also supports Saudi Arabia’s bid.
Australia and Indonesia also held talks on a joint bid but ultimately withdrew.
FIFA has announced that both bids for 2023 will be uncontested, beyond any doubt.
On Tuesday, the Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) said it would vote against awarding the tournament by acclamation and criticized FIFA’s bid process as “flawed and inconsistent”.
