FIFA are reportedly set to make a decision on the date of the 2034 World Cup as it becomes increasingly likely it will be held in Saudi Arabia.
The country is the only active bidder for the 2034 World Cup and due to its high temperature during its summers, it is expected to be moved to January 2034 for a ‘winter world cup’ in a similar vein to the 2022 Qatar World Cup, which was hosted November-December 2022.
As the sole bidder for hosting rights of the 2034 edition, a decision is expected on 11 December and will remove the traditional formal vote process. This means that a decision could be made on the day, with 211 FIFA member nations casting votes for both the 2030 and 2034 World Cups at its congress on 11 December.
In October 2023, Australia officially declared it will drop its intention to host the World Cup in 2034, instead focusing on hosting other upcoming international tournaments, such as the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup and the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup.
Australia’s withdrawal left Saudi Arabia as the only nation left to formally submit a hosting application and interest in hosting football’s most prestigious international competition. Saudi Arabian organisers also stated it had the support of over 70 different associations for its bid.
It now seems a foregone conclusion that the Middle Eastern country will win its bid to host the 2034 World Cup, making it the second country from the region to do so.
However, just like the first Middle Eastern country to host the World Cup; Qatar, many football analysts and stakeholders have raised questions regarding the suitability of the extremely high temperatures in Saudi Arabia for playing during the summer time.
It is also unlikely that the competition would be moved to November/December time as Ramadan falls during this time, making it unsustainable for Muslim players to compete and for the predominantly Muslim population to attend matches.
This is why January 2034 has been earmarked as the date for the potential Saudi Arabia World Cup. However, this will once again cause complications for all European football leagues as it means that a January World Cup will cause all league competitions to halt for one month to accommodate the World Cup.
Moving to January would also mean additional games in between an increasingly loaded football schedule, with the World Cup expanding to 48 teams in 2026 moving forward.
With more games being added to the calendar in Europe, something which has been heavily criticised by players such as recent Ballon d’Or winner Rodri, this could be yet another challenge for FIFA to address as it navigates how to handle player welfare.
