Fifa experts express concerns about Morocco 2026 World Cup bid
A Fifa inspection team expressed concerns about the quality of stadiums and hotel capacity at the North African nation.
Fifa’s 2026 Bid Evaluation Task Force finished its first inspection of Morocco for the North African nation’s bid to host the World Cup.
The experts ended the examination with questions about the quality of the stadiums and hotel capacity.
Despite this, the president of the Morocco 2026 bid, Moulay Hafid Elalamy, said the Fifa task force was ‘very impressed by the Moroccan bid.’
FIFA officials ‘made some remarks on the conditions of some of the stadiums,’ Elalamy said at a press conference in Casablanca. ‘We are currently negotiating with Fifa to find a solution.’
Mixed review
According to Elalamy, the Bid Evaluation Task Force visited five cities ‘and noticed some deviations from the initial planned program.’
He added that the working group ‘asked questions about reliability of accommodation projections...and the plans for the transformation of stadiums.’
‘The committee had a series of positive comments, especially after its members noticed the involvement of the government in providing investment, and the passion that characterizes Moroccans as well as the great development that the country is witnessing.’
Experts to pay second visit this week
This week, Fifa will send experts to Morocco to talk about possible solutions for accommodation and stadiums.
Morocco 2026 is the country’s fifth bid for hosting a World Cup, having previously attempted on 1994, 1998, 2006 and 2010.
For the 2026 competition, the kingdom is up against a joint bid from the United States Canada and Mexico.
The 2026 World Cup will be the first to feature 48 teams instead of 32.