FIFA officially announces Saudi Arabia as host of 2034 World Cup

FIFA on Wednesday officially confirmed Saudi Arabia as the host of the 2034 men’s World Cup.

Saudi Arabia has officially been confirmed at the host of the World Cup 2034.

The FIFA Congress meeting also confirmed Morocco, Spain and Portugal as hosts of the 2030 World Cup with Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay hosting celebratory games.

The congress made the vote in a virtual online meeting.

Saudi Arabia announced its intention to bid on October 4, 2023 and a formal letter of intent was sent to FIFA on October 9, 2023. It became the sole bidder in October of that year when Australia pulled out of the race

Saudi Arabia will become the second Middle Eastern nation to host the tournament, after neighboring Qatar staged the 2022 edition.

The win will further solidify the Kingdom’s global presence on the sports scene as Saudi Arabia rapidly develops this sector.

A recent FIFA Bid Evaluation Report awarded the Kingdom’s bid to host the World Cup 2034 a rating of 419.8 out of 500, which is the “highest technical score awarded by FIFA to any bid to host the World Cup in history,” according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

Saudi Arabia’s bidding campaign slogan “Growing. Together,” unveiled plans to host the world’s first 48-team FIFA World Cup to be held in one country. It proposes that the matches are held across 15 stadiums in five host cities: Riyadh, Jeddah, Khobar, Abha, and NEOM, in addition to 10 other host locations across the Kingdom.

General view inside the Saudi Arabia World Cup bid exhibition, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

There are eight proposed stadiums in Riyadh, four in Jeddah and one in each of Abha, NEOM and al-Khobar.

For instance, Riyadh will host the opening and final matches at the King Salman Stadium, which will be able to accommodate over 92,000 spectators once constructed.

A model of the proposed King Salman International Stadium is seen inside the Saudi Arabia World Cup bid exhibition, Saudi Arabia, December 11, 2024.

The King Fahd Sports City Stadium in Riyadh is also among the proposed stadiums. Known for its distinctive fabric roof inspired by traditional tents, it has the capacity of around 70,000 seats.

A model of the proposed Roshn Stadium is seen inside the Saudi Arabia World Cup bid exhibition.

A model of the proposed Aramco Stadium is seen inside the Saudi Arabia World Cup bid exhibition.

Saudi Arabia was also chosen to host the 2027 Asian Football Cup, and the 2029 Asian Winter Games at a mountain resort in Neom.