Which countries have made a bid to host the FIFA World Cup 2030?

The race for hosting rights of the tournament has officially started.

There are only a few days until the 22nd edition of the FIFA World Cup kicks off, but in all the glitter of the upcoming World Cup, FIFA has already begun preparations for the 2030 edition. The football World Cup is the biggest sporting carnival on earth and hosting it is always a huge honour.

After this year's World Cup in Qatar, the caravan will move to the USA, Mexico and Canada for the 2026 showdown. The 2026 World Cup will see an increase in teams from 32 nations to 48 nations for the first time in history. With FIFA seeking hosts for the 24th edition of the World Cup, the 48-nation factor will be a crucial element, as a single nation might be unable to manage the event logistically.

How will the host for the 2030 World Cup be decided?

The process of selecting the host of the showpiece has already started. FIFA has already invited federations to submit their proposals earlier this year. As for the announcement of the hosts, it will be made at the 74th Congress meeting in 2024. Here the 211 members of associations vote on who will host the 24th World Cup.

The nations who have so far submitted their bid to host the 2030 World Cup are:

South American Nations' Bid

The first bid for the World Cup came from joint collaboration of the Argentina Football Federation with the Uruguay Football Federation. The initial proposal was put forward in 2017 with only Argentina and Uruguay playing the role of hosts. Later on in 2019, Chile and Paraguay, along with Argentina and Uruguay, joined forces. 

Additionally, this bid is historic since it is the first time four nations have come together to host an event. It is considered that Uruguay, Argentina, and Chile together will all make a great bid because they have all experienced the magic of hosting this mega event.

The trio of Spain, Portugal and Ukraine

The second official bid came from the trio of Spain, Portugal and Ukraine. In the beginning, it was Spain and Portugal that registered their bid, but Ukraine recently joined them. 

The bid was officially filed in October 2020. And it is the second time Spain and Portugal are running for the hosting rights of the event. Earlier, both nations attempted to win World Cup bids for either 2018 or 2022. 

It is expected that Spain will be the main host and Ukraine will hold one group. While Portugal will shoulder the rest. Spain haVE already once hosted the event back in 1982. While Portugal will be hoping to stage this event for the first time in its history. 

Ukraine's inclusion was announced this month only at the UEFA News Conference by the Spanish and Portuguese federations. With Ukraine going through a war situation, it will be interesting to see how they present their proposal.

Morocco's Bid

The Moroccan bid for the 2030 World Cup is the third in the running. This is not the first time Morocco has bid for the hosting rights. They previously filed five unsuccessful bids. The last one was for the 2026 World Cup. Where the federation proposed to spend $16 billion on infrastructure and facilities. 

The only African nation to host the World Cup is South Africa in 2010. But, Morocco looks to have a good chance this time around. Additionally, the Moroccan federation has proposed Algeria and Tunisia as co-hosts if the situation requires it and they might join with Egypt, who are also in the running for the hosting rights.

Egypt and Saudi Arabia's cross-continental bid 

The potential bid which can be on the table of FIFA is the joint bid of Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The bid could be cross-continental since Qatar is hosting the 2022 World Cup, so Saudi Arabia's alone proposal would have been null and void. The Egyptian and Saudi federations are expected to submit bids, and Greece could also join them as they are rumoured to be in contact with the Egyptian federation.

Other Bids

Currently, three official proposals have been submitted to FIFA for the hosting of the 2030 World Cup. However, there are also other nations that are expected to enter this race to host this mega event. The quad of Bulgaria, Romania, Greece and Serbia are rumoured to be in running for the hosting rights of the 2030 World Cup. This bid is unlikely to receive support from UEFA, who are expected to support the joint bid by Spain, Portugal, and Ukraine.