Riyadh – Sharikat Mubasher: Saudi Arabia is highly anticipating the Fédération Internationale de Football Association FIFA’s announcement as it is set to confirm the hosts of the 2030- and 2034-men’s World Cups on Wednesday, with a three-continent, six-nation bid led by Morocco, Spain and Portugal to be awarded the former and the latter going to the Saudi Kingdom.

Saudi Arabia will become the second nation from the Middle East to host the tournament in 2034, 12 years after Qatar hosted the 2022 edition.

The 2034 bid by Saudi Arabia has been earlier acknowledged by FIFA as achieving the highest technical rating ever given by FIFA with the bid receiving 419.8 out of 500 points.

The Kingdom officially submitted its bid in July under the slogan "Growing. Together", unveiling its ambitious plans to host the world’s first 48-team FIFA World Cup. The bid proposes matches across 15 stadiums in five host cities: Riyadh, Jeddah, Khobar, Abha, and NEOM, in addition to 10 other host locations across the Kingdom.

As part of the bidding process, FIFA conducted an inspection visit last October to review the details of Saudi Arabia’s bid, where they visited proposed host cities, stadiums, and facilities across the tournament footprint.

Saudi Arabia’s bid to host the FIFA World Cup 2034 reflects the Kingdom’s keenness to achieve the highest level of leadership. It represents the huge support of Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince, and Prime Minister, in accordance with the ambitious goals of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, fulfilling the dreams and aspirations of the Saudi people.