Football Australia’s CEO, James Johnson, confirmed on Thursday that they are actively considering a bid to host the 2034 World Cup. This decision comes despite the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) expressing support for Saudi Arabia’s bid.
Following FIFA’s announcement of Morocco, Spain, and Portugal as the hosts for the 2030 World Cup, with the opening matches to be held in Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay to commemorate the tournament’s centenary, FIFA extended an invitation to countries in the Asia and Oceania regions to submit bids for the 2034 edition.
Shortly after this invitation, the Saudi Arabian Football Federation swiftly declared their bid, a move welcomed by AFC President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa.
“The entire Asian football family will stand united in support of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s momentous initiative”.
Australia, which switched to the Asian Confederation from Oceania in 2006, has already announced its intention to bid for the 2034 tournament and Johnson said nothing had changed.
“As stated previously, Football Australia is exploring the possibility of bidding for the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup and/or the FIFA World Cup 2034,” he said in a statement.
“We are encouraged that after the hugely successful FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023, the football family of Asia and Oceania will once again have the opportunity to showcase their ability to welcome the world and host the best FIFA tournaments.”
Prospective hosts must submit their expressions of interest by the deadline of October 31st. It’s worth noting that Australia has never had the opportunity to host a men’s World Cup in the past, and their bid for the 2022 event saw them eliminated in the initial round of voting.
The 2026 World Cup, set to accommodate 48 teams, has already been designated to the United States, Canada, and Mexico as joint hosts.