FIFA picks Saudi Arabia to host 2034 World Cup amid human rights concerns

Gianni Infantino / FIFA President: “I can confirm that the host of the FIFA World Cup 2034 will be… Saudi Arabia.”

JACK AYLMER: FIFA confirmed the inevitable Wednesday, as it awarded Saudi Arabia the 2034 FIFA World Cup with zero competing bids.

It’s raising concerns over human rights in Saudi Arabia, which has strict policies governing women and restricting the rights of LGBTQ people.

The soccer governing body also announced a 2030 World Cup that will be hosted jointly by Portugal, Spain and Morocco, featuring a special trio of games in Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina to honor the 100th anniversary of the first World Cup, held in Uruguay.

FIFA chose to merge two of the major bids. And because it has a rule blocking a continent from hosting two straight World Cups, it blocked any country in Europe, Africa or South America from bidding to host in 2034.

This allowing Saudi Arabia to coast to a win, in a process critics say was effectively rigged to let the country hold its biggest sporting event yet.

Under Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, Saudi Arabia has embraced global sports as a way for the Kingdom to showcase its small progressive reforms and win over support from the international public.

As the number of leagues and governing bodies cooperating with Saudi Arabia has grown, so has the scrutiny.

One early test came in 2018, when international intelligence linked the Saudi government to the killing of opposition journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey.

Despite public pressure, the U.S.-based World Wrestling Entertainment, or WWE, held its first event in Saudi Arabia just a month later and held firm on a ten-year deal where the Saudi government pays them roughly $50 million per event for two events per year.

Multiple performers chose not to participate in the 2018 event.

Since then, Saudi Arabia has hosted events like MMA fights and Formula One races. F1 driver Lewis Hamilton raised concerns about the Saudi human rights record before the first race in 2021, competing in and winning the race while wearing a rainbow Pride helmet.

And it’s grown its footprint in international soccer, buying English Premier League club Newcastle United, and signing Portuguese soccer legend Cristiano Ronaldo to play for a team in Saudi Arabia.

The Saudis have also jumped into the American sports world, particularly in golf.

Saudi Arabia owns LIV Golf, an upstart rival to the PGA Tour featuring stars including Phil Mickelson. After a legal fight that included a Justice Department anti-trust investigation, LIV and the PGA Tour agreed to a merger last year. That merger is still in progress.

LIV sparked protests from families of victims of the September 11th attacks, who blame Saudi Arabia for its role in serving as a base of operations for 9/11 hijackers.

This also isn’t the first time FIFA awarded the World Cup to a country with major human rights issues. Russia hosted the event in 2018 four years after its first military actions in Ukraine.

And in 2022, Qatar hosted the event and drew condemnation for its refusal to allow players to wear rainbow armbands to support the LGBTQ community and over allegations it used slave labor to build the stadiums hosting World Cup games.

The Saudis have pledged that their World Cup a decade from now will be inclusive, with the country’s sports minister saying they, quote, “welcome everyone” to come see what he described as a “transformation” of Saudi Arabia.

For Straight Arrow News, I’m Jack Aylmer.

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