English Premier League
FIFA deny Gianni Infantino promised Morocco 2030 World Cup final
FIFA have rejected claims that president Gianni Infantino offered Morocco the right to host the 2030 World Cup final in return for public support ahead of an election.
According to a report by The Times, Infantino, who is currently in Morocco, allegedly promised the country the final at the new Hassan II Stadium in Casablanca. The reported offer was said to be conditional on Morocco publicly backing him amid growing pressure for him to leave his position.
A FIFA spokesperson told Spanish newspaper AS: “It is incorrect and misleading to claim that the FIFA president has made any promises regarding the organisation of the 2030 World Cup final. FIFA will make its decision in due course.”
Morocco will co-host the 2030 World Cup with Spain and Portugal. Three opening matches will also be played in South America as part of celebrations marking the centenary of the first World Cup.
The Moroccan bid is understood to be centred on the Hassan II Stadium, which is planned to have a capacity of 115,000. Once completed, it is expected to become the biggest football stadium in the world.
The Santiago Bernabeu remains the leading alternative to stage the final. The stadium, home of Real Madrid, has long been regarded as the preferred venue, particularly because of the close relationship between Infantino and Real Madrid president Florentino Perez.
However, AS reported that FIFA’s increasingly close political ties with Morocco and its allies, alongside cooler relations with Spain, had placed that preference under renewed uncertainty.
The Spanish newspaper said Infantino met members of his inner circle in Morocco on Wednesday to clarify the positions of those involved in the crisis and to develop a strategy to recover momentum lost after the unsuccessful attempt to launch a project involving the sale of 20% of the World Cup and other FIFA competitions to a number of investment funds. Some of those funds were linked to Donald Trump.
AS said the most recent meeting between Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez and Infantino took place during a brief visit to New York a year ago. Infantino has not visited Spain since Luis Rubiales was president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation.
By contrast, the FIFA president has visited Morocco four times in the past two years. He has opened a FIFA office there and Rabat is due to host the next meeting of the FIFA Council, which will also include the election.
Despite concerns about FIFA’s behind-the-scenes dealings, the Spanish Football Federation remains confident the final will be played at the Santiago Bernabeu. It considers the Madrid venue the preferred option of the two Spanish stadiums involved in the tournament.
FIFA’s denial means no decision has yet been made on the venue for the 2030 final, with both the Hassan II Stadium and Santiago Bernabeu continuing to feature prominently in the discussion.