World Cup: Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Greece to proceed with 2030 bid – Daily Mail
By Adam Shergold for MailOnline
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Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Greece ‘will proceed’ with their extraordinary bid to host the 2030 FIFA World Cup.
The governments of all three countries have given the green light to push on with the application process for what would be the second winter staging of the World Cup after Qatar this year.
Most of the costs will be borne by the Saudis, with the majority of matches staged in their country.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has sent the joint nomination file to a company in the United States for ‘processing’, according to Greek website TO10.
Previous reports have suggested a Egypt-Greece-Saudi finals would be staged during the European domestic season because temperatures in June and July in the host countries would be too high.
Saudi Arabia would be the lead partner and at least contribute to the infrastructure costs of Egypt and Greece.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Greece will push ahead with an ambitious plan to co-host the 2030 World Cup – with the leaders of the three countries agreeing to push ahead
It would be held in winter like the upcoming tournament set to take place in Qatar in November
It will be the second World Cups finals to feature 48 teams after the 2026 United States-Canada-Mexico tournament and is likely to require 16 stadiums.
UEFA’s favoured bid is a joint effort between Spain, Portugal and Ukraine after a combined United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland bid abandoned.
There is also expected to be a combined South American bid featuring Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay and Chile because 2030 marks the centenary of the first World Cup in Uruguay.
The report suggested there will be four venues in Greece – the OPAP Arena, Karaiskakis Stadium, Nea Toumpa and the Botanikos, a new stadium for Panathinaikos.
France are the reigning world champions having won the previous tournament in Russia
At least one new stadium will also be built in Egypt and at least two in Saudi Arabia.
Another World Cup staged in November and December is sure to be met with resistance from leading European clubs.
Domestic leagues in Europe will pause between mid-November and Christmas so the Qatar World Cup can be played to avoid summer temperatures of over 40C.
It comes after Saudi Arabia was awarded the right to host the 2029 Asian Winter Games at a £440billion megacity in the desert.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has sent off the bid documents for 2030
The games are set to take place in Trojena, Neom city, which is a planned mountain resort and is expected to be built by 2026.
The Arab state’s bid for the games, which encompasses 47 different events, was ‘unanimously approved’ by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA).
Trojena is part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Neom project under the Saudi Kingdom’s Vision 2030 development plan, which is aimed at reducing the nation’s reliance on oil and transforming their economy, including by developing sport in the nation.
The Arab nation has faced significant criticism that the country is sportswashing by using high-profile sporting events to improve its worldwide image and divert attention away from its human-rights record.
Saudi Arabia has been awarded the rights to host the 2029 Asian Winter Games in Trojena
Trojena is a planned mountain resort in the desert that is expected to be built by 2026
In August, Anthony Joshua fought Oleksandr Usyk in the city of Jeddah, while the divisive LIV Golf league is funded by Saudi Arabia.
They also host a Formula One grand prix on the annual calendar, while the Spanish Super Cup has been held in the country.
Perhaps most notably, the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia holds an 80 per cent stake in Newcastle United.
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