2030 World Cup final battle intensifies as Morocco PM urges caution and Spain insists | OneFootball

The tussle over who stages the 2030 World Cup final intensified on Friday, as Morocco’s prime minister urged his federation chief to stop making promises and Spain’s FA president insisted the showpiece should be in Spain.

Aziz Akhannouch rebuked Fouzi Lekjaa after the Moroccan FA boss told a political event Casablanca would have the honour of hosting the final. Akhannouch said such commitments should not be made without first discussing them with co-hosts Spain and Portugal, and warned against campaign pledges. FIFA has not confirmed the final venue, and a spokesperson told Reuters a decision would be made in due course.

On the same day, Spanish federation president Rafael Louzan dismissed Lekjaa’s claim as an election slogan and argued Spain is the natural host as reigning world champions. “I think Spain is the obvious place, because it cannot be otherwise. As you know, we are currently world champions,” he said to Cadena SER. He added Spain’s ability to stage major events is not in doubt and that the final should be in Spain.

In May, Morocco’s proposed 115,000-seat stadium for 2030 was about 30% complete, with officials aiming to finish by the end of 2027.

New Jersey was selected to host the July 2026 final, though FIFA only announced that decision in February 2024.

Source: L'Équipe

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”