Saudi Arabia won the bid for the 2034 World Cup, and the 2030 edition of the tournament will be held across six nations, FIFA announced on Wednesday.
The FIFA World Cup is returning to the Middle East.
Saudi Arabia was officially named the host for the 2034 tournament on Wednesday, running unopposed in its bid after being named the sole candidate in October 2023. It will join Qatar, the 2022 host, as the second Middle Eastern country to host a men's World Cup.
More than 200 FIFA member federations took part in an online meeting on Wednesday hosted by FIFA president Gianni Infantino in Zurich, Switzerland, to confirm the 2030 and 2034 World Cup hosts.
Hosting the 2034 World Cup is the latest and biggest step in Saudi Arabia's mission to grow in sports, particularly soccer.
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In 2016, the country launched Vision 2030, a government program aimed at economic and cultural diversification with sports as a key component. Since then, the country's Public Investment Fund (PIF) has helped spark the creation of LIV Golf and draw in soccer superstars Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar and Karim Benzema to join clubs in the Saudi Pro League.
Human rights groups have warned against Saudi Arabia as a World Cup host nation, saying that the decision would put the lives of migrant workers at risk. FIFA declared in a report last month that the risk assessment for human rights in a Saudi Arabian World Cup was "medium."
Who will host the 2026 FIFA World Cup?
Soccer
The 2026 World Cup will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico. It will mark the first time three countries have hosted the same World Cup, and it will also be the first edition of the 48-team format.
U.S. host cities include Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco/Bay Area and Seattle.
Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey will serve as host cities in Mexico, while Toronto and Vancouver will hold contests in Canada.
Who will host the 2030 FIFA World Cup?
The 2030 World Cup will have six host countries.
Spain, Portugal and Morocco will serve as the main hosts, while anniversary matches will be held in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay to celebrate the 100 years since the inaugural World Cup.
When will the 2034 World Cup be played?
Dates for matches have not been announced.
While the World Cup is typically played in summer months, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar was played in November and December due to the country's intense heat in the summer.
As The Athletic's Colin Millar points out, if a similar decision is to be made for the 2034 World Cup in Saudi Arabia, the event would more likely be held in January and February of 2034 due to Ramadan falling in November and December of 2033 and 2034.
