Saudi Arabia was officially announced as the host of the FIFA World Cup 2023, while the 2030 season will be held in Morocco, Spain and Portugal. Apart from this, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay will also be included. The World Cup will complete 100 years in 2030. It will be organized in 6 countries across 3 continents.
Saudi Arabia is now set to host the FIFA World Cup after becoming the host for the 2034 Asian Games as well as the 2027 AFC Asian Cup. In October 2023, FIFA set a 25-day deadline for countries to express interest in hosting the 2034 World Cup. In this, both Australia and Saudi Arabia put forward their names.
Australia has pulled out of the race days after securing the rights to host the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup and the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup. This left Saudi Arabia as the only candidate. It was also given a score of 4.2 out of 5 by FIFA in its review, which is higher than the score given to the US, Canada and Mexico for 2026, which got 4 out of 5 points.
Last Thursday, Cristiano Ronaldo, who plays for Saudi Arabia’s Al Nasr, also posted on his social media handle supporting Saudi Arabia. Winning the hosting rights will come under scrutiny over Saudi labor laws and the treatment of workers, mostly from South Asia, who are needed to build and upgrade 15 stadiums, as well as hotels and transport networks ahead of the 104-match tournament.