FIFA confirms Saudi Arabia as host of 2034 World Cup

FIFA confirmed on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia will host the 2034 World Cup, underscoring the Gulf kingdom's growing influence in world sport despite criticism of the country's human rights record. At the same time, a virtual congress of world football's governing bodies confirmed that Morocco, Spain and Portugal will be joint hosts of the 2030 World Cup, with three games also played in South America. The Saudi bid was praised during a meeting of FIFA's 211 national member associations, but no rivals stood in its way.

Saudi Sports Minister Abdulaziz bin Turki bin Faisal Al Saud said, “This is a proud day, a day of celebration, a day when we invite the whole world to Saudi Arabia.”

“We intend to hold an extraordinary edition of the World Cup in our state.”

However, there was immediate condemnation from rights groups, who stressed that handing over the hosting of the tournament to the country puts the lives of construction workers at risk and is “a moment of great danger”.

FIFA had implemented its principle of rotating the World Cup between continents, which meant that only bids from Asia or Oceania would be welcomed for 2034.

The unprecedented staging of the 2030 tournament will involve three continental confederations in Europe, Africa and South America, while the next World Cup in 2026 – the first to feature 48 teams – will take place in North America.

Controversially, the body gave potential bidders barely a month last year to submit candidacies, and Australia and Indonesia immediately dropped their interest.

This left Saudi Arabia as the only candidate, paving the way for the World Cup to return to the Gulf region soon after Qatar hosts it in 2022.

The kingdom's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has been using sport for some time to accumulate influence and improve his global image – though critics say he is diverting attention from Saudi Arabia's rights record. Effectively “sportswashing”.

'Moment of great danger'

Awarding the World Cup to Saudi would again make the human rights issue a major talking point, as it was two years ago.

“We are inclusive and we are non-discriminatory, and we want to achieve positive social impact,” FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in the closing remarks.

“We are of course aware of the critics and fears, and I have full confidence in our hosts that they will address all open points from this process and deliver a FIFA World Cup that will live up to expectations.”

He said that “social improvement and positive human rights impact” are “responsibilities of hosting the World Cup.”

Rights groups highlight allegations of mass executions and torture in Saudi Arabia, as well as restrictions on women under the conservative country's male guardianship system. There are also severe restrictions on free expression.

“Despite the well-known and serious risks to residents, migrant workers and visiting fans, FIFA's decision to award the tournament to Saudi Arabia is a moment of great danger,” Amnesty International and 20 other organizations said in a joint statement.

Steve Cockburn, Amnesty's head of labor rights and sport, said, “Based on the clear evidence to date, FIFA knows that without fundamental reforms in Saudi Arabia, workers will be exploited and will even die, And yet he has decided to move forward regardless.”

'Centenary Celebration'

The 2030 tournament will mark a century since the first World Cup was held in Uruguay, and as a result the South American nation will also be assigned a game alongside Argentina and Paraguay in a joint bid unmatched by Morocco, Spain and Portugal.

FIFA confirmed a year ago that a joint proposal led by Morocco, Spain and Portugal was the sole contender for 2030, with all other potential candidates sidelined.

Four South American countries launched a joint bid in 2019, convinced that the centenary World Cup should take place entirely on the continent where it all began.

Meanwhile, Morocco replaced Ukraine as Spain and Portugal's partner, while South America agreed to step aside in exchange for hosting three games.

Following these “centenary celebrations” in the Southern Hemisphere winter, the six teams involved will cross the Atlantic to play the rest of the tournament.

Spain, which hosted the 1982 World Cup, should be the focal point as it has 11 of the proposed 20 stadiums.

Morocco – having failed to be awarded the staging of the tournament on five previous occasions – will become the second African country to host the competition, following South Africa in 2010.

Possible venues for the July 21 final include the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid and Barcelona's renovated Camp Nou, as well as the planned Hassan II Stadium between Casablanca and Rabat, which has a capacity of 115,000.