Saudi Arabia To Host 2034 World Cup As Australia Withdraws Bid

Saudi Arabia is in a strong position to host the 2034 World Cup after Australia officially withdrew from the bidding process.

FIFA had previously decided to consider bids from the Asia and Oceania region for the 2034 tournament.

Australia, however, announced its decision to withdraw from the bid, stating that they would not be pursuing hosting the 2034 competition.

“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,” Football Australia said in a statement.

With Australia no longer in the running, Saudi Arabia is well-placed to host the World Cup in 2034.

Australia is redirecting its efforts towards hosting the AFC Women’s Asian Cup in 2026 and the FIFA Club World Cup in 2029.

Instead, the Australia football federation has opted to proceed with their bids for the Women’s Asian Cup in 2026 and the FIFA Club World Cup in 2029.

In a press release sent out on Tuesday, FIFA confirmed that Saudi Arabia was the only bidder for the 2034 tournament.

However, FIFA said that it will still “conduct thorough bidding and evaluation processes” for the 2030 and 2034 tournaments, with the hosts set to be confirmed by October.

Spain, Portugal, and Morocco are due to co-host the 2030 tournament, while Uruguay, Paraguay, and Argentina will all stage an opening match each to mark 100 years since the first World Cup took place.

FIFA added that it will remain in contact with the bidders to ensure that “complete, comprehensive bids” are received, which will then be evaluated against the “minimum hosting requirements as previously approved by the FIFA Council.”

FIFA says the “priority areas” for the bids are infrastructure, services, commercial and sustainability, and human rights.

In recent years Saudi Arabia has hosted a number of major sports events – notably in Formula One and boxing – while its investment in the LIV Golf Tour and the Saudi Pro League, which has seen many leading soccer stars move to Saudi Arabian clubs, has arguably disrupted sports’ world order.