FIFA has revealed a preliminary draft of the dates for the 2030 World Cup. It did so on the official website, in a section called “Frequently Asked Questions about the 2030 World Cup, which will be organized by Portugal, Spain and Morocco, as well as the South American trio.” Thus, the competition begins on June 8 and 9, with the so-called “opening games” of Uruguay (Montevideo), Argentina (Buenos Aires) and Paraguay (Asuncion). But a few days later, on June 13 and 14, the real opening ceremony of the event will take place, along with other meetings, in cities and stadiums to be determined.
The remaining group matches, which include the three aforementioned South American teams, will be held on June 15 and 16. Later, on the 21st and 22nd, we will watch the second round matches of the Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay groups. FIFA confirms later in the article on its website that this second round will be held in the Iberian Peninsula or in Africa. In other words, 101 matches will be played in Portugal, Spain and Morocco and only three in South America, despite Argentina’s desire to bring more matches to their continent.
The grand final will take place 45 days after the start of the competition, on July 21, and everything points to it being held at the Santiago Bernabéu. It will be the longest World Cup in history, surpassing the 2026 edition (in the United States, Canada and Mexico), which will last 38 days.
FIFA indicates that granting the right to organize the 2030 World Cup still needs to be approved by its Congress, where all 211 members of this organization hold seats, and that it should be held in the last quarter of 2024. However, this will only be a formality, given consensus on this nomination. Thus, the organization led by Gianni Infantino also confirms that Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay, as co-organisers, have indeed qualified for the final stage.
Why Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay?
If Uruguay’s inclusion in the group of host nations is not surprising, as they were the organizers (and winners) of the first edition, in 1930, the entry of Argentina and Paraguay into this group, as a means of commemorating the centenary of the World Cup competition, may have led to some questions. But FIFA counters: In the case of Argentina, it is due to the fact that they reached the finals of that inaugural edition; As for Paraguay, it is a form of recognition for that country as the headquarters of the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL), “the first and only continental association that existed at the time of the World Cup in 1930.”
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