A new decisive step in the 2030 World Cup file: FIFA knocks on the doors of Moroccan cities
15 cities in the final race
FIFA issued a statement on Tuesday setting out fresh measures on how stadiums will be chosen for the 2030 World Cup, a tournament set to be co-hosted by Morocco, Spain and Portugal.
A FIFA delegation will carry out a series of site visits across Morocco, Portugal and Spain throughout November and December, "as part of the ongoing planning process for the 2030 World Cup".
Representatives from the main functional areas will make up the delegation, touring the cities and stadiums bidding to host the tournament in all three countries. These visits mark a key stage in the selection process, allowing FIFA to assess how ready each candidate stadium is, along with its operational plans and the infrastructure lined up for the finals.
Throughout the visits, the FIFA delegation will meet representatives of local, regional and national authorities, stadium operators, transport and mobility stakeholders, accommodation providers and other key delivery partners.
According to the statement, the delegation will visit the following candidate cities: Agadir, Barcelona, Bilbao, Casablanca, Fez, Las Palmas, Lisbon, Madrid, Marrakech, Porto, Rabat, San Sebastian, Seville, Tangier and Zaragoza.
FIFA added that more cities could be visited during the host city selection process, saying: "The stadium visits aim to support the assessment of each candidate host city and each candidate stadium in accordance with FIFA's requirements".
The statement went on: "This process will assist FIFA in reaching its final decision regarding the selection of stadiums to host the 2030 World Cup. The number of matches and the types of corresponding matches to be held in each stadium will only be determined after the host cities are confirmed and as part of the match scheduling process, as FIFA continues to work closely with all stakeholders in Morocco, Portugal and Spain to strengthen preparations for the tournament.
It signed off: "Further information relating to the venue selection process for the 2030 FIFA World Cup will be announced in due course".
