A World Cup in six countries. A World Cup on three continents. A World Cup with an ocean in between. The 2030 World Cup will be unusual. It will start in Uruguay, home of the first World Cup in 1930, Argentina and Paraguay and will end in Spain, Portugal and Morocco. Such a unique format that raises several questions. 48 years later, Spain will once again organize a World Cup, now shared.
No. A lot has changed in football since 1982 when Spain hosted its first World Cup. It was on October 6, 1964, in Tokyo, when the FIFA Congress was held that awarded the twelfth World Cup to Spain. Two years later, in London, the decision was ratified. That World Cup was played by 24 teams. The 2030 one will be the second with 48 selections.
In fact, until 2002 all the World Cups were held at a single venue. Then, Japan and South Korea broke up. There has not been another precedent for multiple venues (yes in the Euro Cups) until the 2026 World Cup, which will be played in three countries. Of course, the US, Canada and Mexico belong to the same continent.
The 1982 World Cup was held on the Iberian Peninsula. Neither the Balearic Islands nor the Canary Islands hosted the tournament. Now, however, there is a distance of 10,000 kilometers between Buenos Aires and Madrid.
In principle, the idea is that Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina each organize an opening match – it is understood that of their own team. So only six teams, the three hosts and their respective rivals, will have to start in South America and cross the pond.
Yes. The choice of the World Cup venue is not official. The only thing that FIFA has announced is that there is only one candidacy to organize the 2030 tournament. That is, Conmebol withdraws its proposal. Thus, in the extraordinary congress, scheduled for December 2024, Spain, Portugal and Morocco will be voted on and officially named as organizers of the twenty-fourth World Cup.
It is still very early but Madrid and the Santiago Bernabéu, which on July 11, 1982 was already the scene of Italy’s victory over Germany (3-1), seem like the clearest candidates to repeat.
In that sense, the most logical thing would be an alternation in the semifinals. Each of them would be disputed in Portuguese and Moroccan territory, respectively. Third and fourth place could go to another great Spanish stadium. The Camp Nou, for example, in 1982 hosted the opening match and one of the semifinals (the other was in Seville).
