Saudi Arabia, which has the ambition to become a stronghold of international soccer, announced on Wednesday its candidacy to organize the 2034 World Cup.
With this candidacy, the oil monarchy “plans to offer a world-class tournament and will be inspired by the ongoing social and economic transformation of Saudi Arabia, and the passion for soccer deeply rooted in the country,” says in a press release the Saudi Football Federation.
This announcement, which was expected, comes a year after the World Cup among neighbors Qatar, who attracted the attention of the whole world by organizing the first World Cup in history in the Middle East.
On this occasion, the Saudi Arabian team achieved the feat in the group stage of beating Argentina (2-1), future world champion.
In the wake of this World Cup, Saudi Arabia embarked on a policy of purchasing major football stars to animate its championship, first recruiting the five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo before bringing in others talents, like Karim Benzema and Neymar.
Saudi Arabia and the players involved have been accused of “sportswashing” for helping the ultra-conservative kingdom divert international attention from its human rights abuses.
Sport is nonetheless a major axis of the policy of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who aims to transform his kingdom into a country of business and tourism, to reduce its dependence on oil revenues.
Arabia already hosts a number of major sporting events. It will notably organize the FIFA Club World Cup in December, and the Saudi Sovereign Fund announced in August the creation of an investment company supposed to “accelerate the growth of the sports sector” and “global events”.