King Mohamed VI emerged as a central figure once again in the bid for the 2030 FIFA World Cup. His initial announcement in March introduced the triple candidacy involving Spain, Portugal, and Morocco as potential hosts for the sporting event. On Wednesday, the monarch made headlines once more when he unveiled FIFA’s decision to host the competition in Morocco, Spain and Portugal.
The official Royal decision statement was released on Wednesday afternoon just moments before FIFA disclosed their decision and well before any official reactions from Madrid or Lisbon.
“His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God assist Him, has the great pleasure of announcing to the Moroccan people that the FIFA Executive Committee has unanimously selected the Morocco-Spain-Portugal bid as the sole candidate to organize the 2030 Football World Cup,” read the royal statement
King Mohamed VI had previously assumed a pivotal role on March 14, 2023, when he unveiled the tripartite candidacy. While he was away on vacation in Pointe-Denis, Gabon, his Minister of Education, Chakib Benmoussa, delivered the announcement on his behalf in Kigali, Rwanda, where he was accepting an award from the African Football Confederation on behalf of the King.
For Morocco, this moment is historic in itself as Fouzi Lekjaa pointed out, “This is a pivotal moment in Moroccan football history, and it marks a significant achievement under the leadership of His Majesty King Mohammed VI,” he told Radio Mars today.
Lekjaa further added that Morocco aims to offer not just stadiums with good infrastructure but cities characterized by cultural diversity and “geographic harmony.”
“The beauty of this World Cup lies in the fact Morocco is less than one hour away from Lisbon and an hour and fifteen minutes away from Madrid,” Lekjaa said.
The eagerly anticipated negotiations concerning the distribution of matches and the selection of stadiums are set to start on the 18th of this month, with the expectations that this process will span over several months.