FIFA said on Friday that it would decide “in due course” on the venue for the 2030 World Cup final, after Morocco’s football federation president, Fouzi Lekjaa, claimed the match would be played in Morocco.
Morocco, Spain and Portugal will co-host the 2030 tournament and have already begun competing to host the final.
Madrid’s Santiago Bernabéu and a planned 115,000-capacity stadium in Benslimane, near Casablanca, are considered the leading contenders.
“Benslimane province will host the World Cup final. Whether some people like it or not,” Lekjaa said during a public meeting in the region, according to local media.
However, a FIFA spokesperson told AFP that, as announced on August 5, the governing body would make a decision on the venue “in due course.”
Lekjaa’s comments drew reactions in Spain, with Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho backing the Santiago Bernabéu as the preferred venue.
Mourinho, a Portuguese, said he would prefer the final to be held in Lisbon but argued that the Bernabéu would be an ideal choice because of its history and significance to football.
“If you can play in a legendary, historic stadium, where some of the greatest players in history have played, the stadium of the most important club in the history of football, then I think it should be here,” Mourinho said.
The 2030 World Cup will be jointly hosted by Morocco, Spain and Portugal, with Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay also set to stage centenary celebration matches.
