FIFA favourites will host 2034 World Cup after only rival pulls out

31 October 2023 , 08:07

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The World Cup is heading to Saudi (Image: PA Archive/PA Images)

FIFA are set to get their way with the 2034 World Cup all set for Saudi Arabia, after Australia decided not to bid.

Football Australia said it had "explored the opportunity" of a bid but ultimately chose not to pursue it, leaving world football's governing body's No.1 choice for the tournament in 11 years time as the sole bidder.

Australian football chiefs remain keen to bring more major tournaments to the country. They believe they are in a strong position to host the Women's Asian Cup in 2026 and then the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup, following the success of this year's Women's World Cup.

But the moment the Asian Football Confederation elected to back the Saudi bid for 2034, their hopes were dead in the water.

"We have explored the opportunity to bid to host the FIFA World Cup and - having taken all factors into consideration - we have reached the conclusion not to do so for the 2034 competition," the Australian FA said in a statement. "Instead, we believe we are in a strong position to host the oldest women's international competition in the world, the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026, and then welcome the greatest teams in world football for the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup.

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"Achieving this - following the Women's World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023 and with the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games - would represent a truly golden decade for Australian football."

Saudi Arabia announced its interest in hosting the 2034 tournament just hours after FIFA outlined the process. With the 2026 finals going to the United States, Canada and Mexico, and Spain, Portugal and Morocco likely to host the 2030 finals, only bids from the Asian Football Confederation and the Oceania Football Confederation will be considered for the 2034 finals.

Saudi Arabia fans during last year's World Cup in Qatar (Getty Images)

On October 4, Saudi Arabia announced its intention to bid for the prestigious 2034 FIFA World Cup. The country's Minister of Sport, Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal, said in a statement: "Hosting a FIFA World Cup in 2034 would help us achieve our dream of becoming a leading nation in world sport and would mark a significant milestone in the country's transformation."

"As an emerging and welcoming home for all sports, we believe that hosting a FIFA World Cup is a natural next step in our football journey."

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In mid-October, Saudi Arabian Football Federation general secretary Ibrahim Alkassim added: “Winning the bid is our biggest match, and we will put all our efforts to try and win the bid and to successfully host the World Cup in Saudi Arabia. They (other nations) all believe in our bid, they all witnessed the growth of the game that happened in Saudi Arabia, they all believe in us on how we can serve as a force for good in football.

‌“FIFA’s vision is to make football global, and as a member of FIFA, we at the Saudi Arabian Football Association have to serve towards that vision. We want to contribute to grow the game around the world. It’s not only for Saudi, it’s for the whole word.

‌“We are talking 11 years from now. It's a long journey … If we go back to 2016, when the country launched the Vision 2030, seven years later you can see the huge progress that happened here in Saudi Arabia. So, imagine what could happen in the next 11 years."

* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]

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