The leaders of the four football-playing continents came to an agreement on Wednesday, according to FIFA, to approve only one bid to host the event in 2030.
A pact to allow the men's football tournament to begin with a 100th birthday party in Uruguay has led to the startling addition of South America to the unusual 2030 World Cup, which will be played in Europe, Africa, and both continents of Asia.
The leaders of the four football-playing continents came to an agreement on Wednesday, according to FIFA, to approve only one bid to host the event in 2030.
This year, Morocco was added to the Spain-Portugal bid, which now also includes longtime rivals Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
A pact to allow the men's football tournament to begin with a 100th birthday party in Uruguay has led to the startling addition of South America to the unusual 2030 World Cup, which will be played in Europe, Africa, and both continents of Asia.
The leaders of the four football-playing continents came to an agreement on Wednesday, according to FIFA, to approve only one bid to host the event in 2030.
This year, Morocco was added to the Spain-Portugal bid, which now also includes longtime rivals Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
Being able to launch in the Uruguayan city of Montevideo, where the Centenario Stadium held the initial 1930 World Cup final, is a major draw of the historic three-continent event.
"South America, where it all started, could not be far from the centenary World Cup," said Alejandro Dominguez, president of CONMEBOL, the governing body of South American football. "Three continents will host the 2030 World Cup."
FIFA was able to expedite the start of the 2034 World Cup bidding process because to the agreement achieved by the formerly hostile football continents. This competition was only open to member federations from Asia and Oceania.
Following its successful co-hosting of the Women's World Cup with New Zealand this year, Australia is also interested in hosting the 2034 edition, which Saudi Arabia has targeted. In either case, the 2034 competition will almost definitely be held in November and December, similar to the World Cup in Qatar the previous year.
The 211 member federations' annual conference must still formally approve the FIFA Council's endorsement of a unified 2030 candidature. That ought to be merely a formality.
"In 2030, we will have a unique global footprint, three continents -- Africa, Europe, and South America -- — six countries -- Argentina, Morocco, Paraguay, Portugal, Spain, and Uruguay -- welcoming and uniting the world while celebrating together the "beautiful game," the centenary, and the FIFA World Cup," FIFA president Gianni Infantino said in a statement.
The 48-team tournament, which will consist of 104 games, will begin in June-July 2030 with matches in Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay before moving to the main host countries of Spain, Portugal, and Morocco. Unprecedented amounts of travel between regions and time zones are involved.
Since the 2018 World Cup in Russia, South America has been actively promoting their co-host bid, which formerly included Chile but was not mentioned on Wednesday.
Additionally, Ukraine was removed despite being included in the European bid a year prior at a press conference held in Switzerland at the UEFA headquarters. Ukraine, meanwhile, has not been brought up in formal remarks about the UEFA-supported candidature this year.
The United States, Canada, and Mexico will host the inaugural men's World Cup with 48 teams in 2026.
