Football’s governing body FIFA has confirmed that only one country has bid to host the 2034 World Cup, with the deadline having closed on Tuesday this week.
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As reported by Reuters, Saudi Arabia is likely to host the global showpiece in 2034 after they became the only football association to present a bid before the deadline closed.
Australia was expected to also submit a bid, but withdrew their interest to leave the Middle Eastern nation as the only candidate, FIFA confirmed this week.
"As established in the Bidding Regulations approved by the FIFA Council, the FIFA administration will conduct thorough bidding and evaluation processes for the 2030 and 2034 editions of the FIFA World Cup, with the hosts to be appointed by FIFA Congresses expected to take place by Q4 2024," a statement from Gianni Infantino's organisation read.
Saudi FA president Yasser Al Misehal, meanwhile, has stated that his federation is committed to fulfilling all FIFA requirements as the footballing body prepares to analyse their bid.
"All members of the Saudi football family are doing their best to achieve the dream of the Saudis male and females to see the World Cup in the Kingdom for the first time," he wrote on social media platform X (formerly Twitter)
"We believe in the great power of football to inspire future generations and we hope World Cup 2034 contributes to the development of the game throughout the world."
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It was also confirmed by FIFA that Morocco, Portugal and Spain were the only countries to bid for the rights to host the 2020 World Cup in what is going to be a jointly-held tournament, with Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay hosting games to celebrate the World Cup's 100-year anniversary too.
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