Four Latin American countries pushing to host 2030 FIFA World Cup
Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay, want to jointly hold the World Cup in 2030, and Africa and Europe also want to make a push to host the tournament.
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An aerial view of the Centenario stadium in Montevideo, Uruguay in July, 1930 (AP)
Four Latin American states, namely Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay, have officially announced their bid to host the 2030 World Cup, which could mark a shift in how the tournament is held, taking place in several countries at the same time instead of just one single nation.
The joint South American candidacy will push to organize the 2030 World Cup and bring the tournament back to Latin America after Brazil hosted the competition in 2014.
While Uruguay was the first country to do so in 1930, the said three countries are attempting to bring the tournament to the continent, and fans are heavily endorsing the push, as the World Cup returning to Uruguay would bring back a lot of nostalgia to the game.
Considering that it would be the 100th anniversary of the tournament, the CONMEBOL-based countries are heavily pushing to have the World Cup take place there.
CONMEBOL's bid will even be endorsed by the UEFA, as the football's governing bodies in South America and Europe have joined efforts previously to help their common interests, which was the case when FIFA tried to have the World Cup every two years.
Sports ministers and representatives of the four embassies met Thursday in the Paraguayan capital of Asunción and raised the issue before FIFA.
“Today we have made the political and sporting decision to relaunch the possibility of holding the 2030 World Cup in South America, and in these four countries,” Paraguayan Vice President Hugo Velázquez told a press conference.
The South American candidates do not have the financial resources to compete "with the great world powers" and therefore plan a World Cup "in an austere manner," he added.
CONMEBOL president Alejandro Domínguez underlined the fact that Uruguay still used the legendary Estadio Centenario, noting that this would add one more interesting element to the country hosting the football tournament.
Several countries are expected to make joint bids to host the tournament as the World Cup trends in the coming years; the federation will vet the candidates for the 2030 World Cup in 2024.
Portugal and Spain are also expected to present a joint bid to host the 2030 FIFA World Cup, while a joint bid by African countries is also expected to reach FIFA's front office.
