Sánchez Sees in Co-Hosting 2030 World Cup a Concrete Example of Excellent Morocco-Spain Ties

The joint bid by Morocco, Portugal and Spain to host the 2030 World Cup reached a “significant” milestone with the official submission of the complete bid file to the Fédération Internationale de Football (FIFA), at an event held on Monday 29 July at FIFA’s offices in Paris, according to a press release from the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF).

The official bid file was submitted to FIFA president, Gianni Infantino, by the presidents of the three candidate football Federations: Fouzi Lekjaa, FRMF President, Fernando Gomez, President of the Portuguese Football Federation and Álvaro de Miguel, general secretary of the Royal Spanish Football Federation on behalf of its president, Pedro Rocha, the same source adds.

“Your three countries have already given so much to football, countries with a great passion for the game, great organizational skills and a shared vision of what football and its values should be! It’s fantastic that you’ve united two continents in the dream of hosting the FIFA World Cup! Soccer unites the world, and you’re proving it with this bid,” declared Infantino, upon receiving the bid documents from the candidate Federations.

On this occasion, the officials from the three candidate Federations presented the vision of their tripartite bid. Lekjaa stressed that “we are proud and honored to present a historic bid for our three countries, in line with the vision of His Majesty King Mohammed VI.”

“We are truly convinced that our bid will be a heritage for today’s generations and a legacy for those to come. We are working to ensure that the 2030 FIFA World Cup brings together people from all over the world and makes all Africans proud,” he added.

For his part, Gomes noted that “the bid file we have submitted here today proposes a vision for the future, where the environmental aspect is a structuring pillar of the event. It integrates the needs of the competition with the expectations and future of the cities and populations that will host the World Cup, while promoting inclusion and diversity as a solid foundation for our proposal!”.

“42 years ago, our country hosted a World Cup: Spain 1982. More than 40% of our population hadn’t been born then. The 2030 World Cup shall unite those who witnessed it and those who did not. It will also unite three countries and two continents, thus leaving an intergenerational, international and intercontinental legacy,” said, for his part, de Miguel.

Driven by the ambition to organize a competition “for soccer, for the world, for tomorrow”, the joint bid to host the 2030 World Cup is embodied by the slogan “YallaVamos”.

“This slogan symbolizes a proactive effort to move soccer forward on a global scale,” the statement underlines, noting that considerable efforts have already been made throughout the campaign to promote this vision, with the bid having tens of thousands of followers on social networks.

By bringing together two continents, the press release added, “this bid opens a new page in the centenary history of the FIFA Men’s World Cup. To celebrate this, the bid focuses on building bridges between cultures, providing a welcoming environment for fans and visitors from all backgrounds, and leaving a real legacy in terms of sustainability, innovation, investment and social impact.”

Detailing the bid’s vision and technical planning, including transport, accommodation and proposed infrastructure for the 2030 FIFA World Cup, the completion of the bid documents represents “a major milestone for the bid organization efforts,” the same source added, noting that the full bid documents will be published by FIFA in due course.

The joint bid to host the 2030 World Cup is backed by an impressive group of ambassadors, including soccer legends from each nation – Luis Figo, Andres Iniesta and Nourredine Naybet – and legend Emmanuel Adebayor, as well as leading players from current men’s and women’s national teams: Cristiano Ronaldo, Achraf Hakimi, Dolores Silva, Ghizlane Chebbak, Alvaro Morata, Irene Paredes and Yassine Bounou.

The final decision on the host countries for the 2030 FIFA World Cup will be taken by a vote of the FIFA Congress on December 11, 2024.

(MAP: 30 July 2024)

Interior Minister Abdelouafi Laftit chaired, on Wednesday 17 July in Marrakech, an extended meeting dedicated to examining the state of progress of the city’s preparations for the 2030 FIFA World Cup.

This meeting, attended by Royal Moroccan Football Federation’s (FRMF) President, Fouzi Lekjaa, and Wali of the Marrakech-Safi region, governor of the Marrakech prefecture, Farid Chourak, brought together the different stakeholders in the preparation process.

On the occasion, Laftit said that this meeting is part of a broader series of similar meetings in the cities hosting 2030 World Cup games, as part of the intensive preparations for the organization of this global sporting event, alongside Spain and Portugal.

In this regard, the Minister called on all stakeholders to deploy all necessary efforts and to leverage all financial and human resources needed to speed up the pace of preparations, stressing the importance of succeeding in readying the Red City for this global event.

In a statement to the press, Lekjaa stressed that Marrakech, with its infrastructure, its historical heritage and the different development projects launched by HM King Mohammed VI, will be a key city in hosting future world events, including the 2030 World Cup.

He added that Marrakech, throughout the years, has demonstrated its exceptional capacities to host global events, recalling the perfect organization of the Annual Meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Lekjaa also noted that Marrakech’s commitment to host big events in the future should accelerate the city’s development momentum in various fields, asserting that this promotes its “unique” stamp on a global scale.

During the meeting, marked by presentations by the various stakeholders involved in hosting the 2030 World Cup and other sporting events, emphasis was on the development projects and infrastructure that should enable Moroccan cities, including Marrakech, to be well prepared for this global football event, in accordance with FIFA standards, particularly in terms of stadiums and training site infrastructure, transport and mobility, accommodation and sustainable development.

MAP: 18 July 2024

Interior Minister, Abdelouafi Laftit, chaired, here Thursday, an extended meeting dedicated to examining the state of progress of the city’s preparations for the 2030 FIFA World Cup.
This meeting, attended by Royal Moroccan Football Federation’s (FRMF) President, Fouzi Lekjaa, and Wali of the Rabat-Salé-Kénitra region, Mohamed Yacoubi, brought together the different stakeholders in the preparation process.

Speaking on the occasion, Laftit stressed the importance of an all-out mobilization in order to guarantee the successful organization of the 2030 World Cup in Morocco, as well as the Africa Cup of Nations (Morocco-2025), which the Kingdom will host prior to this global event.

In this respect, he called on the stakeholders to redouble their efforts and mobilize all the financial and human resources needed to accelerate the pace of preparations, noting the importance of the success of the next stage, namely the 2025 AFCON, with a view to boosting trust in moving forward with the process of preparing to host other sporting events.

Laftit also noted Rabat’s central role as the Kingdom’s capital and host city to several events before the 2030 World Cup, stressing that the city must be ready starting next year.

For his part, Lekjaa stated that the development trajectory initiated by His Majesty King Mohammed VI over the last 25 years throughout the Kingdom will make Morocco a privileged destination for the organization of exceptional continental or world events, notably 2025 AFCON.

In a statement to the press following the meeting, he highlighted Rabat’s centrality for the 2030 World Cup, especially as it will host the 2025 AFCON matches, including those of the national soccer team.

The Prince Moulay Abdellah Sports Complex, which will be ready by the end of this year with a capacity of 65,000 spectators, will be one of the stadiums qualified to host the World Cup semi-finals, he added, the aim being for the Kingdom of Morocco to organize an “exceptional World Cup.”

The meeting was marked by presentations by various stakeholders, highlighting development and infrastructure projects designed to enable Moroccan cities, including Rabat, to meet FIFA’s requirements and standards, particularly in terms of stadiums, training sites, transport and mobility, accommodation and sustainable development.

Mechanisms for the integrated management of projects scheduled as part of these preparations were also presented, with a view to reinforcing the monitoring, control and timely implementation of projects.

MAP: 4 July 2024

The committee of the joint Morocco-Portugal-Spain bid for the 2030 FIFA World Cup, “YallaVamos2030”, said that “no final decision has yet been taken on the number of stadiums, their geographical distribution or the allocation of matches by country”.

“Any official information on this subject will be communicated via official channels”, said the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) in a statement issued at the end of a committee meeting held on June 27-28 in Agadir, the aim of which was to inspect the various sites bidding to host the tournament, in addition to finalizing the last adjustments before the final submission of the joint bid by the three countries, scheduled for the end of July.

During the first day of the meeting, the source added, the representatives of the bid committees from the three countries visited several key sites in Agadir, including the city’s main stadium. The delegation also assessed possible locations for hosting the “FIFA Fan Festival”, focusing on Agadir’s iconic beach as the main option. In addition, the seaside resort of Taghazout was examined as a potential location for team base camps.

On Friday, an online meeting was held with FIFA representatives, focusing on the bidding process and its progress. This meeting was followed by working sessions within the tripartite steering committee to review various aspects and finalize adjustments to the bid form, added the FRMF in the statement.

“The committee is delighted with the quality of the collaboration between all the stakeholders and reaffirms its commitment to continue working in close cooperation with FIFA and the local authorities of the three countries to present a solid final bid for the 2030 World Cup,” concluded the same source.

Projects linked to the organization by Morocco, alongside Spain and Portugal, of the 2030 World Cup have been launched in all sectors, in accordance with the High Instructions of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, said, on Thursday in Rabat, Minister Delegate in charge of the Budget, Fouzi Lekjaa.

Morocco will endeavor to ensure the success of this major event, Lekjaa told the press at the end of an enlarged meeting, held as part of the preparations for the 2030 World Cup.

It was devoted to the coordination between all the ministerial departments concerned, the setting up of a unified system of joint action and the implementation of an integrated roadmap, based on the proper fulfillment of commitments, the convergence of initiatives and interventions and the harmonization of their programming, within the framework of the complementary roles of the various stakeholders, so as to guarantee the necessary conditions and means enabling the Kingdom to succeed in the challenge of co-hosting this global sporting event with Spain and Portugal.

This edition will be, as intended by His Majesty the King, the best in the history of this event, added Lekjaa, noting that this enlarged meeting is part of a series of similar ones held since the announcement by the Sovereign to the Moroccan people of the good news of the organization by Morocco of the 2030 World Cup jointly with Spain and Portugal.

The Minister noted that the meeting was an opportunity to take stock of the work accomplished to date and to discuss the actions to be taken as soon as possible, stressing that the joint bid will be presented before the end of July and will be voted on by FIFA before the end of the year.
 

An enlarged meeting was held on Thursday at the headquarters of the Ministry of the Interior, as part of the intensive preparations for the organization of the 2030 World Cup, in line with the Royal Vision and Will, which carry a strong ambition to ensure the great success of this international event.

The meeting was attended by the Minister of the Interior, the Minister of Equipment and Water, the Minister of National Education, Preschool Learning and Sports, the Minister of National Land Planning, Urban Development, Housing and Urban Policy, the Minister of Tourism, Handicrafts and the Social and Solidarity Economy, the Minister of Transport and Logistics and the Minister Delegate in charge of the Budget.

The meeting also took place in the presence of the walis and presidents of the councils of the regions concerned by the organization of the World Cup matches, as well as the presidents and representatives of the communal councils of these regions.

A statement by the Ministry of the Interior said that the meeting was devoted to the coordination between all the ministerial departments concerned, the setting up of a unified system of joint action and the implementation of an integrated roadmap, based on the proper fulfillment of commitments, the convergence of initiatives and interventions and the harmonization of their programming, within the framework of the complementary roles of the various stakeholders, so as to guarantee the necessary conditions and means enabling the Kingdom to succeed in the challenge of co-hosting this global sporting event with Spain and Portugal.

This coordination meeting was an opportunity for all stakeholders to reiterate their determination to intensify sectoral efforts and mobilize all capacities and resources, as well as to present efficient initiatives, in line with a global vision aimed at devising an innovative organizational offering that meets, in all its aspects, the Royal ambition to move forward with a distinguished organization of this world event, and to strengthen Morocco’s position as a reliable partner for hosting international events, and consolidate the Kingdom’s privileged place among the great nations.

It was also an occasion to reaffirm the Kingdom’s commitment to working, in perfect complementarity, with the bodies responsible for this issue in the host countries (Morocco-Spain-Portugal), to make the 2030 World Cup an exceptional event and a milestone in the organization of sporting events, capable of consolidating the civilizational, cultural and human aspects uniting the three countries, concluded the statement.