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Key Points
- The teams from all six hosting nations will get automatic entry to the 48-team tournament.
- The tournament is scheduled for June-July 2030.
- It will start with games in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay before moving to Spain, Portugal and Morocco.
A unique tournament is set to be played in Europe and Africa, with the surprising addition of South America, in a deal to allow the men’s football showpiece tournament to start with a 100th birthday party in Uruguay.
“The centennial World Cup could not be far from South America, where everything began,” said Alejandro Dominguez, the president of South American football body CONMEBOL. “The 2030 World Cup will be played in three continents.”
Alejandro Dominguez, president of South American football body CONMEBOL, said the World Cup could not be far from South America “where everything began”. Source: AAP / Jorge Saenz/AP
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The consensus reached by once-rival football continents also let FIFA fast-track the opening of the 2034 World Cup bidding contest, limited to member federations from Asia and Oceania.
Accelerating the choice of a 2034 host to the end of next year will be widely seen as a victory for Saudi Arabia and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has built close ties to FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
“In 2030,” Infantino said in a statement, “we will have a unique global footprint, three continents — Africa, Europe and South America — six countries — Argentina, Morocco, Paraguay, Portugal, Spain and Uruguay — welcoming and uniting the world while celebrating together the beautiful game, the centenary and the FIFA World Cup.”
“Horrendous for supporters, disregards the environment and rolls the red carpet out to a host for 2034 with an appalling human rights record.”