2LT Local News

CANBERRA, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) — Football Australia (FA) has ruled out a bid for the country to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup.

In a statement issued on Tuesday evening, the governing body announced it has opted out of a bid for the tournament in 2034.

FA had previously said it hoped to secure the 2034 World Cup on the back of co-hosting the record-breaking 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Tuesday’s announcement comes after the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) earlier in October threw its support behind the Saudi Arabian Football Federation’s bid for the tournament after FIFA fast-tracked the process with only countries from Asia and Oceania eligible.

Following the FIFA announcement, the Football Association of Indonesia entered discussions with FA about a possible joint bid but later backed Saudi Arabia.

“We have explored the opportunity to bid to host the FIFA World Cup and – having taken all factors into consideration – we have reached the conclusion not to do so for the 2034 competition,” the FA statement said.

Instead, FA said it is focused on securing the hosting rights for the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup and 2029 Club World Cup.

“Achieving this – following the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023 and with the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games – would represent a truly golden decade for Australian football,” the statement said, “We wish FIFA and the eventual hosts of the FIFA World Cup 2034 the greatest success for the good of the game and for everyone who loves our sport.”

Australia’s only previous bid to host the men’s FIFA World Cup was for the 2022 tournament, which was hosted by Qatar.