The Saudi Football Federation said it was ready to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup in winter or even summer, ensuring that the kingdom, the only candidate to host the tournament, could face “all possibilities”.
“There are many new technologies that make it possible to cool or add air conditioners in stadiums, not to mention that many cities in the kingdom enjoy a very pleasant atmosphere in summer,” said Saudi football boss Yasser on Tuesday evening. Al-Misehal.
“We are ready to face all possibilities,” he assured, on the sidelines of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) awards ceremony in Qatar, where a Football World Cup was organized for the first time outside of summer, between November 20 and December 18, 2022.
No suspense
Officially, the Saudi kingdom, where temperatures can rise up to 50 degrees Celsius in summer, has not yet been designated to host the global tournament but the suspense is low, the International Football Federation (Fifa) having indicated on Tuesday that his candidacy was the only one on the table.
According to Yasser Al-Misehal, the kingdom will be the first country to host a World Cup on its own with 48 teams, the two previous editions being shared between the United States, Canada and Mexico in 2026, and between Spain, the Portugal and Morocco in 2030.
Temperate climate or large stadiums
As in the rest of the Gulf, one of the hottest regions in the world, Saudi cities experience strong heat in summer, but some however benefit from a more temperate climate such as Abha, Taif or Al-Baha, where The Arab Club Football Championship took place last summer.
However, sports infrastructure is more limited, with the largest stadiums located in the capital Riyadh, or in the coastal city of Jeddah.
Applications and pitfalls
Formally, Fifa has so far only received “declarations of interest” for 2030 and 2034, pending the submission of applications, which will be evaluated and put to a vote at the end of next year.
But the absence of competition leaves little room for suspense, while raising many questions about the environmental impact of the 2030 event and the compatibility of the 2034 tournament with Fifa’s commitments in terms of human rights. ‘man.