After the withdrawal of Australia’s candidacy, Fifa, through its president Gianni Infantino, announced on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia would organize the 2034 Football World Cup. The country said it was ready to “face all possibilities” for its smooth running.
Published on: 02/11/2023 – 10:04
4 mn
The Football World Cup now has its headquarters in the Gulf. Twelve years after its neighbor Qatar, Saudi Arabia will also have the honor of hosting the global event for the 2034 edition, even if its candidacy file remains to be finalized.
After the attribution of the 2026 World Cup to the United States, Canada and Mexico, and that of 2030 to Spain, Portugal and Morocco, only member countries of the Asian and Oceanian confederations were invited to apply, following FIFA’s continental rotation policy. The withdrawal on Tuesday of the only other candidate in the running, Australia, opened the way for Saudi Arabia.
The kingdom, the world’s leading exporter of crude oil, applied as a candidate on October 4, 27 days before the closing of calls for tenders for the 2030 and 2034 World Cups. Its designation was confirmed by the president of the world football body, Gianni Infantino, on Instagram, even if the official application file has yet to be submitted and put to a vote at the end of next year.
According to Yasser Al-Misehal, the boss of Saudi football, Saudi Arabia will present a “solo bid”, to become the first country to host a World Cup on its own with 48 teams.
What about human rights?
The ultra-conservative kingdom, which only opened its doors to foreign tourists in 2019, is seeking to reduce its dependence on oil by focusing in particular on sport.
Under the leadership of its 38-year-old crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, the country has increased investments in football but also Formula 1, golf, horse riding and boxing.
07:28 Saudi Arabia continues its conquest of world football © France 24
Hundreds of millions of dollars have been disbursed this year by its sovereign wealth fund to recruit football stars, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar and Karim Benzema to Saudi clubs.
The monarchy is, however, widely criticized for its violations of human rights, both for the assassination in 2018 of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as well as for its frequent use of the death penalty, its laws against homosexuality, gender inequalities and its restrictions on freedom of expression.
The awarding of the World Cup to Saudi Arabia “despite its appalling human rights record (…) shows that Fifa’s commitment to human rights is a sham” , denounced Minky Worden of Human Rights Watch.
In a statement released on social media on Tuesday evening, the Saudi Football Federation said it was “fully committed to meeting and exceeding the requirements of the bid” highlighting “the immense passion for the game within our young nation.” .
A new world championship in winter?
The Saudi Football Federation has said it is ready to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup in winter or even summer, assuring that the oil monarchy can cope with “all possibilities”.
“There are many new technologies that make it possible to cool or add air conditioners in the stadiums, not to mention that many cities in the kingdom enjoy a very pleasant atmosphere in summer,” stressed Tuesday evening to the AFP, Saudi football boss Yasser Al-Misehal.
“We are ready to face all possibilities,” he assured, on the sidelines of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) awards ceremony in Doha.
While most Saudi cities experience intense heat in summer, some benefit from a more temperate climate such as Abha, Taif or Al-Baha, where the Arab Club Football Championship took place last summer.
None of these cities, however, has sports infrastructure commensurate with the event, the largest stadiums being located in the capital Riyadh, or in the coastal city of Jeddah.
Far from the questions raised by the award process or human rights, the Saudis are delighted to host the most popular tournament in the world.
“This is excellent news and it doesn’t come out of nowhere,” said Saud al-Oreifi, a 62-year-old resident of the capital, highlighting the proliferation of sporting events in the kingdom. “This is the result of past efforts and successes.”
While in Riyadh, Kuwaiti Thamer al-Choiebi also said he was “proud” to see Saudi Arabia “honoring not only the Saudis, but the entire Arab world.”
