The 2030 World Cup will open in South America and then be played in Morocco, Spain and Portugal. The world association Fifa announced this after a meeting of the Fifa Council. This means that the World Cup will be held on three continents for the first time. The opening game is scheduled to take place in Uruguay, with two further games in Argentina and Paraguay.
With this, FIFA also wants to honor the anniversary of the tournament accordingly. The first World Cup was held in Uruguay in 1930. The three South American countries originally wanted to hold the tournament in its entirety, but FIFA rejected this. After the three games, the tournament continues with 48 nations in Morocco, Spain and Portugal. All six teams are automatically qualified for the final round. An anniversary celebration will also take place in Montevideo, the capital of the first World Cup host Uruguay. FIFA’s announcement came as a surprise. The tournament was actually not supposed to be awarded until 2024 at the 74th FIFA Congress.
This means that World Cup games will take place in North Africa, Portugal and Paraguay for the first time. Uruguay hosted the first edition in 1930, Argentina hosted the World Cup in 1978 and Spain hosted the World Cup in 1982. “In a divided world, FIFA and football unite,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino. The 100th anniversary of the World Cup should be celebrated in the most appropriate way. “The first of these three games will of course be played in the stadium where it all began, in the mythical Estádio Centenário of Montevideo,” Infantino said. The 2026 World Cup will be played in the USA, Mexico and Canada. According to FIFA’s announcement, only representatives from Asia and Oceania should apply for the 2034 World Cup. Saudi Arabia is very interested in playing host.