Saudi Arabia will be handed the 2034 World Cup today when it kicks off quietly at a FIFA web conference.
The Middle Eastern nation is the only bidder for the competition in 10 years and will be confirmed by a round of applause from the delegates in a rather absurd way to decide which country will host football’s greatest show.
Spain, Portugal and Morocco will be handed the 2030 World Cup with FIFA combining the two competitions together. Also hosting a match in Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina to mark the centenary of the first World Cup means FIFA’s rotation rules have effectively ruled out most other continents for 2034.
FIFA’s decision to open the process for 2034 with just 25 days for potential bidders to submit documents also reduced the playing fields.
Australia and New Zealand were strong but could not meet the demands in that time period. Saudi Arabia’s bid was, curiously, ready and, with the support of the Asian Football Confederation, they marched unopposed.
The human rights assessment was challenged
Human rights concerns in Saudi Arabia persist. FIFA’s “independent” assessment, carried out by a Saudi-based company, was dismissed as “bogus” by Human Rights Watch by reiterating many of the issues faced by migrant workers at Qatar 2022.
There is also the matter of when the World Cup will be held and whether it will be held in 2034 at all.
The climate means it should be in the European winter, but November and December conflict with the holy month of Ramadan, meaning it could be pushed back to January and February 2035.
Olson has concerns
Saudi Arabia’s bid appears to have been led by controversial president Gianni Infantino and former UEFA general secretary Lars-Christer Olsson has concerns.
“When I look at the handling of this particular vote, there are bad signs,” he told the Times. “It is not as corrupt as it was in the era of (former presidents) Joao Havelange and Sepp Blatter, but it bothers me that it is moving in a similar direction.
“It’s looking more and more like Fifa in the Havelange era, when a lot of things were decided by shouting.”
He added: “You shouldn’t vote by shouting, you should vote with a proper voting system. This is the only way to show that they are against those who are against. Otherwise it will just be seen as a unanimous decision for Saudi Arabia in the FIFA records.
“But many associations are just following FIFA, looking for something for themselves. It’s a bargaining carousel. People forget their principles, the things that are the foundations of their organization and what they have to do to be true to them.”
