by The news was announced on Tuesday by the Moroccan Minister of Sports and the confirmation from the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) arrived a day later. In a statement, the organization chaired by Fernando Gomes announced that Morocco has joined the Iberian bid to host the 2030 World Cup, without permanently removing Ukraine from the equation.
“Fernando Gomes and Luis Rubiales, presidents of the FPF and RFEF, have reached an agreement with Fouzi Lekia, president of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation, to formalize the strongest possible candidacy in terms of social, sporting, cultural and infrastructure,” say the people in charge. for the FPF.
The decision was announced this Wednesday to the representatives of the European associations at the UEFA meeting, organized on the sidelines of the FIFA Congress, taking place in Kigali, Rwanda, and was “received very positively”. “It is a historic nomination, since for the first time a World Cup would be held on two continents,” the statement added.
In practice, this addition to the Iberian candidacy does not affect the number of cities and stadiums that will host Spain and Portugal, trusting the officials of the Portuguese federation that the entry of Morocco “will contribute to strengthening the ties between Europe and Africa, as and the entire Mediterranean”.
As for Ukraine’s role in this proposal, it remains to be fully clarified. “Ukraine’s participation in the project will be clarified in due course due to the situation the country is going through, as well as the president of the Ukrainian Football Federation, Andrii Pavelko, who is currently suspended from his duties,” it read .
In a competitive environment in which a joint South American bid has already been confirmed, involving Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay, and in which another proposal is in the works bringing together Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Greece, this Moroccan movement could have a significant impact. This is because it will likely generate a significant share of votes from Africa — which, in the absence of any other option, would fall to the Egyptians.
The choice of the host for the World Cup is made through the vote of the 211 confederations that make up the FIFA universe, excluding the candidate countries. In the most recent edition of the tournament, which in 2026 will be held in the USA, Mexico and Canada, Morocco also submitted a bid, having received a large majority of votes from African confederations (41 against 11, who voted in favor of the North American proposal), but also from more distant places, such as Brazil or China.
The deadline for approving applications is next June, with a decision on the winning proposal scheduled for the third quarter of 2024. The logistical challenge is sure to be far greater than the one Qatar took on a few months ago, after the approval, at the FIFA Congress, to expand the number of participating teams, from the usual 32 to 48. A scheme to be launched within three years.
