Saudi Arabia Emerges as Sole Candidate to Host 2034 FIFA World Cup
There are still more than 10 years until the 2034 FIFA World Cup, but Saudi Arabia has already positioned itself as the only candidate to host the event. Several conditions have aligned for Saudi Arabia to be in this position.
The process to submit a bid for the 2034 tournament is extensive, with a key date being this Tuesday, October 31. FIFA has stated that the submission process began on October 6, and countries have until October 31 to confirm their interest in hosting the World Cup. Due to the rotation of conferences, only countries from the Asian and Oceania football federations can express their interest in hosting the 2034 World Cup during this period.
On October 9, the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) submitted a letter of intent and a signed declaration to FIFA to host the World Cup. This action officially placed Saudi Arabia in the process as they expressed their interest within the specified period and belong to the Asian continent.
Australia was initially considering entering the bidding process but decided against it, leaving Saudi Arabia as the sole candidate for the 2034 World Cup.
However, Saudi Arabia still has a long journey ahead for its candidacy to be successful. According to FIFA rules, after the October 31 deadline, interested countries (in this case, only Saudi Arabia) will receive a candidacy agreement from FIFA. The agreement must be returned to FIFA by November 30 to confirm participation. On December 4, FIFA will send all bid presentation and World Cup hosting documents to the participating countries. Workshops, meetings, and other activities will take place starting in January 2024 for the completion of the application submission process. Interested countries will formally present their candidacy in July. FIFA will evaluate the presented candidacies in the third quarter of 2024 and publish evaluation reports in the fourth quarter of the same year. Finally, in the fourth quarter of 2024, the FIFA Congress will select the country to host the World Cup.
While hosting the FIFA World Cup would elevate Saudi Arabia’s standing in global sports, the nation has faced controversy and backlash for using sport as a means of “sportswashing.” The term sportswashing refers to governments using high-profile sporting events to divert attention from alleged irregularities and project a favorable image. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) has disregarded criticisms of sportswashing and sees it as a means to boost the country’s GDP growth.
In light of these concerns, the Sports & Rights Alliance, a global coalition advocating for human rights and fighting corruption in sport, has called on FIFA to ensure the protection of human rights at the 2030 and 2034 men’s World Cups. The alliance stressed the importance of FIFA demanding host countries to comply with its human rights policies during the selection process.
Spain, Portugal, and Morocco will co-host the 2030 tournament, and Uruguay, Paraguay, and Argentina will each hold an opening match for the 2034 edition. The Sports & Rights Alliance urged FIFA to take action during the host selection process to address potential human rights risks. They emphasized the need for binding guarantees to protect workers’ rights, ensure freedom of expression, and prevent discrimination related to the World Cup.
CNN has reached out to SAFF for comment on the matter.