Morocco prime minister challenges promise to host 2030 World Cup final

Morocco's prime minister Aziz Akhannouch has challenged football federation president Fouzi Lekjaa over his public promise that Casablanca will stage the 2030 World Cup final. BBC Sport reported the intervention on Friday, with FIFA still to decide where the tournament's closing match will be played.

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Lekjaa had made the claim at a political party event. Speaking at a rally, Akhannouch said the matter needed discussion with co-hosts Spain and Portugal and criticised the use of electoral promises. His response made clear that Lekjaa's statement did not reflect an agreed allocation of the final.

Spain's federation president Rafael Louzan has also pressed his country's case. According to the BBC, he told Cadena SER that Spain should host the final, citing its ability to organise major events while acknowledging that no decision had been taken. FIFA told the broadcaster that an announcement would come in due course.

The countries' overall hosting rights are already settled. FIFA's official announcement on 11 December 2024 confirmed Morocco, Portugal and Spain as joint organisers following a virtual Extraordinary Congress involving all 211 member associations. The appointment was made by acclamation, concluding a bidding process that began in October 2023 after a unanimous FIFA Council proposal supported by the confederations.

The confirmed arrangement also extends beyond the three main hosts. Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay will each stage one centenary celebration match, FIFA said in its announcement. Those fixtures form part of the tournament's 100th-anniversary programme. The South American component and the joint Morocco-Portugal-Spain hosting plan were both included in the same formal decision, rather than being separate proposals still awaiting approval by Congress.

At the time of the award, FIFA president Gianni Infantino presented the agreement as an example of international unity, describing the World Cup as an opportunity for countries to work together. He congratulated the six nations involved in the 2030 event during his Congress address. The governing body's announcement established their roles as hosts without naming a venue for the final.