Football World Cup
Saudi Arabia announces World Cup bid for 2034
Saudi Arabia has announced its bid for the 2034 World Cup. photo
© -/AP/dpa
That was fast. Shortly after FIFA’s preliminary decision to award the 2030 World Cup, Saudi Arabia registered its interest in the tournament four years later. The chances aren’t bad at all.
Shortly after the preliminary award decision for the 2030 World Cup Saudi Arabia announced its bid for the subsequent finals in 2034. This was announced by the national football association SAFF.
The aim is to host a world-class tournament and be inspired “by Saudi Arabia’s ongoing social and economic transformation and the country’s deep-rooted passion for football,” it said in a statement.
Rotation principle increases opportunities
The FIFA Council had recently announced that the 2030 World Cup would begin with three games in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay and then be played in Morocco, Spain and Portugal. The decision still needs to be confirmed by the FIFA Congress. At the same time, FIFA announced that only representatives from Asia and Oceania should apply for the 2034 World Cup in accordance with the rotation principle. This increases Saudi Arabia’s chances significantly.
The country is heavily criticized for violations of human rights. Saudi Arabia is accused of wanting to burnish its image by investing billions of dollars in sport. Just this summer, numerous soccer stars moved to the Saudi league for extremely high salaries.
Saudi Arabia originally wanted to host the 2030 World Cup. The country has already secured hosting of the 2023 FIFA Club World Cup and the 2027 Asian Cup. A Formula 1 race, boxing world championships and its own golf series as well as the Asian Winter Games in 2029 will also take place there.