The 2030 FIFA World Cup will be staged jointly by Morocco, Spain, and Portugal, marking the tournament’s 100th anniversary since the inaugural edition in Uruguay in 1930. FIFA formally ratified the hosting arrangement in December 2024, following an unopposed bid process that concluded the previous year.
In a special nod to the competition’s centenary, Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay will each stage one match before the tournament shifts to its three main hosts. Uruguay’s opening match will be played at Estadio Centenario in Montevideo — the same ground that hosted the first-ever World Cup final in 1930 — while Argentina hosts a match at Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires and Paraguay at its national stadium in Asunción, home of CONMEBOL.
The arrangement makes 2030 the first World Cup played across more than one confederation, uniting Africa, Europe, and South America in a single tournament. It will also be the first World Cup ever held in Morocco and Portugal, and Spain’s first since 1982.
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The tournament will keep the 48-team, expanded format introduced at the 2026 World Cup, with 101 matches played across Morocco, Spain, and Portugal and three additional centenary matches in South America. All six host nations — Morocco, Spain, Portugal, Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay — qualify automatically.
Preparations Underway
With the tournament still four years away, the host list has already seen minor changes. Two originally proposed Spanish venues — Málaga and A Coruña — have since withdrawn as host cities over logistical and cost concerns, while residents in San Sebastián have separately petitioned FIFA over hosting-related overtourism worries. FIFA’s final venue list is expected to be confirmed ahead of a 2026 deadline.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has described the arrangement as a symbol of football’s global unity, framing the six-nation, three-continent format as a fitting way to mark a century since the tournament’s founding in Uruguay.