New Manchester United stadium may feature at 2035 Women’s World Cup | OneFootball

Wembley and a new Manchester United stadium could be crown jewels in the 2035 Women’s World Cup after Gianni Infantino, the Fifa president, announced the United Kingdom had a clear run at hosting the tournament.

Infantino confirmed there were no other bidders for the tournament, meaning a football World Cup will take place on British shores for the first time since 1966. The Football Association expects Wembley to host the final, although Fifa will have ultimate signoff. United’s planned new home, which is mooted to have a capacity of 100,000, may also play a focal part if the venue has been completed according to projections.

The FA’s CEO, Mark Bullingham, confirmed United would be consulted to ascertain whether their stadium can be included in November’s formal bid submission. “We’re going to have conversations with them and work out if they can be part of it or not,” he said.

“We’ve got a number of different stadia being built in the country, potentially Man United, potentially Birmingham, and with a 10-year horizon you’ve got to work out exactly where you’ll be then. There will be lots of conversations to be had, understanding timescales for stadium builds, understanding what people want and knitting that together.”

Bullingham was speaking on the sidelines of Uefa’s annual congress in Belgrade, where Infantino’s morning announcement to delegates stole the show from European football’s governing body. Infantino also said Fifa intended to expand the Women’s World Cup to 48 teams, mirroring the new look of the men’s competition, from 2031; Bullingham said the UK would be ready to accommodate an event of such sprawling scale.

“We’re really well set up for that,” he said. “You’ve then got to have 16 stadiums. We’d be happy either way, but we’d be really comfortable with 48 teams. It just creates more impact across the whole country.”

Cardiff’s Principality Stadium would be expected to host games, while the redevelopment of Wrexham’s Racecourse Ground is likely to make that a viable venue. Hampden Park is the obvious candidate to lead Scotland’s part of the bid and Bullingham said the job of increasing Belfast’s Windsor Park, which holds 18,500, to the necessary 20,000 capacity could be “easily achieved”.

The smooth path to host status is a boost to the FA, which had been uncertain over the status of a potential rival bid from Spain, Portugal and Morocco. The deadline for expressions of interest passed on Monday but it was only early on Thursday that Fifa clarified the state of play. Infantino also named the US, probably alongside other Concacaf members, as the only candidate for the 2031 edition. Concacaf covers North and Central America, along with the Caribbean.

England successfully held the Women’s European Championship, which Sarina Wiegman’s team won, in 2022. It was unsuccessful in bids to host the 2006 and 2018 men’s World Cups, losing out to Germany and Russia respectively. The men’s European Championship in 2028, which will be hosted across the UK and the Republic of Ireland, may be helpful for the 2035 showpiece.

Wiegman, who has been preparing her side for Friday’s match against Belgium, was among those to hail the announcement. “Of course it’s really good news and it will be great if the tournament is held here,” she said. “We know from the experience of the Euros how big the game is already here and what that momentum did in this country and also worldwide. It is the biggest female event we have in the world. It is so exciting.”

The Lionesses captain, Leah Williamson, echoed that sentiment and pointed to the huge success of Euro 2022. “Having experienced the home tournament and how lucky we are, it’s exciting as players to know that’s on the horizon,” she said. “I think the commitment from the FA about how we push the game on says a lot about how much we care about women’s football here. I think 2022 was a great demonstration of that intent.”

The bid has full government backing and Keir Starmer highlighted its potential transformative effect. “Today’s fantastic news is a huge step forward towards the UK hosting the World Cup once again, all while boosting growth and prosperity,” the prime minister said. “Our daughters could be those on the pitch in 2035, playing football for our country. And the economic benefits that come alongside hosting a major tournament like this cannot be overstated.”

The UK’s bid must be ratified at Fifa’s congress in 2026. Government guarantees around tax issues and security are required to be provided to Fifa by the end of this month.

Header image: [Photograph: Foster + Partners/PA]