FIFA on Wednesday declared that Morocco, Spain, and Portugal have been chosen as the hosts for the 2030 football World Cup. Simultaneously, Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay have been granted the privilege of hosting the opening matches, commemorating the tournament’s centenary, according to a Reuters report.
According to the news agency, remarkably, the joint bid presented by Morocco, Portugal, and Spain stood as the exclusive contender to host the event, a decision that FIFA had originally planned to reveal in the following year.
FIFA conveyed in a statement quoted by Reuters, “The FIFA Council unanimously agreed that the sole candidacy will be the combined bid of Morocco, Portugal, and Spain, which will host the event in 2030 and qualify automatically from the existing slot allocation.”
“Additionally, having taken into account the historical context of the first-ever FIFA World Cup, the FIFA Council further unanimously agreed to host a unique centenary celebration ceremony in Uruguay’s capital city, Montevideo… as well as three World Cup matches in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay respectively,” it added.
“In a divided world, FIFA and football are uniting,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
All six national teams will get automatic entry to the 48-team tournament, FIFA said.
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FIFA Council takes key decisions on FIFA World Cup™ editions in 2030 and 2034: Morocco, Portugal and Spain joint bid is the sole candidate to host FIFA World Cup 2030™
➡️https://t.co/cKJec1tIE4 pic.twitter.com/mwLRerCIlg— FIFA Media (@fifamedia) October 4, 2023
“The FIFA Council… unanimously agreed to celebrate the centenary of the FIFA World Cup, whose first edition was played in Uruguay in 1930, in the most appropriate way. As a result, a celebration will take place in South America, and three South American countries – Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay – will organize one match each of the FIFA World Cup 2030.”
Infantino revealed that the first of these three matches would be played at Montevideo’s Estadio Centenario, the very venue that hosted the inaugural World Cup in 1930.
FIFA also disclosed that the 2034 World Cup will be held in either the Asia or Oceania region, with member associations from these regions being invited to submit bids to host this prestigious tournament.