Football Australia (FA) has announced that it will not bid to host the 2034 World Cup, clearing the way for Saudi Arabia to potentially be awarded the tournament. Australia, the co-hosts of this year’s Women’s World Cup, had been seen as the only potential rival to Saudi Arabia’s bid, but they have determined that their chances of securing the tournament were not realistic.
A statement released by FA before FIFA’s deadline stated: “We have considered the opportunity to bid for the Fifa World Cup and, after careful consideration of all factors, we have decided not to do so for the 2034 competition.”
FA expressed their interest in hosting the 2026 Asia Cup and the 2029 Club World Cup, emphasizing their credentials as a host for major sporting events. They stated: “For international tournament hosting, the Australian time zones offer significant opportunities for broadcasters, and we are within close reach of billions of people in Asia and Oceania, which also provides a strong commercial outlook for competitions.”
However, if Australia had submitted a bid, they would have faced a formidable challenge to win the 2034 World Cup, which is only available to nations in Asia and Oceania. Saudi Arabia’s football federation claims to have the support of over 100 of FIFA’s 211 members, who would vote on the bids if a second nation declared their interest.
Saudi Arabia quickly declared itself a candidate for the 2034 tournament soon after FIFA announced an expedited process for awarding it. With the 2026 World Cup set to take place in North America and six nations from South America, Africa, and Europe hosting games in 2030, only a few nations were eligible and realistically capable of hosting a competition that will likely involve 48 teams and attract millions of visitors.
A Saudi-hosted World Cup is likely to be highly controversial due to the country’s human rights record. The Sports and Rights Alliance, a coalition of NGOs and trade unions, is urging FIFA to demand commitments to improve human rights from prospective hosts of the tournament. “With only one bid on the table for each tournament, FIFA may have made a mistake. FIFA must now clarify how it expects hosts to comply with its human rights policies. It must also be prepared to halt the bidding process if serious human rights risks are not adequately addressed,” said Steve Cockburn, Head of Economic and Social Justice at Amnesty International.
“The host selection process is the best opportunity for FIFA to secure binding guarantees for protecting workers’ rights, ensuring freedom of expression, and preventing discrimination associated with the World Cup. These human rights commitments must be agreed upon with potential hosts before final decisions on hosting the tournaments are made.”
Saudi Arabia has made significant investments in football over the past year, attracting high-profile players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, and Sadio Mane to its Pro League. The country has not indicated whether it would propose hosting the tournament in the European winter months, as Qatar did in 2022. However, considering that temperatures in the capital city of Riyadh reach an average of 97 degrees Fahrenheit in July and August, it seems likely that the tournament would have to be scheduled for later in the year.
