ZURICH — FIFA has officially confirmed that the 2030 World Cup will be jointly hosted across six countries spanning three continents. Spain, Portugal, and Morocco have been designated as the co-hosts, while the tournament's opening three matches are scheduled to take place in Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay.
This significant decision has been made in commemoration of the World Cup's centenary, marking 100 years since the inaugural tournament in Montevideo. The final ratification of this decision is expected to take place at a FIFA congress in the upcoming year.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino expressed the unifying power of football, stating, "In a divided world, FIFA and football are uniting." He emphasized the unanimous agreement of the FIFA Council to celebrate the centenary of the FIFA World Cup in a grand manner. The 2030 World Cup will feature a unique global presence, with matches spread across three continents—Africa, Europe, and South America—and hosted by six countries: Argentina, Morocco, Paraguay, Portugal, Spain, and Uruguay. This celebration aims to bring the world together in a joyous commemoration of the beautiful game, the centenary milestone, and the FIFA World Cup itself.
Furthermore, FIFA has confirmed that bids for the 2034 World Cup will only be considered from countries belonging to the Asian Football Confederation and the Oceania Football Confederation. Notably, Saudi Arabia is expected to submit its first-ever bid to host the tournament in 2034.
Montevideo, Uruguay, the historic city that hosted the inaugural World Cup match in 1930, is poised to stage the opening game in 2030, followed by matches in Argentina and Paraguay. The remaining matches of the 48-team tournament will be held in North Africa and Europe.
If the proposal for the 2030 World Cup is approved, Morocco would become only the second African nation to host a World Cup, following South Africa's hosting in 2010. Spain has been named as one of the joint hosts, a development that comes shortly after the resignation of former football federation chief Luis Rubiales, who faced criticism for an incident at the Women's World Cup. Rubiales was given a restraining order by a Spanish judge but denied allegations of sexual assault. Spain previously hosted the World Cup in 1982.
Portugal, on the other hand, has never hosted the tournament, although it was the venue for Euro 2004.
As in previous World Cups with multiple hosts, Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay, Spain, Portugal, and Morocco will all receive automatic qualification for the tournament.
