World Cup Football

Football World Cup > Hosts

Host Country Selection

The selection of host country for the Football World Cup has changed over time. For all the World Cups between 1930 and 1998, the hosting rights alternated between either Europe, South America, and North America. It was not until the 2002 World Cup, when the tournament was hosted in Asia, that the World Cup was held outside of these three continents.

2002

Initially in the bidding process for the 2002 World Cup, South Korea and Japan were competitors. However, just before the vote they agreed with FIFA to co-host the event. Unfortunately the rivalry and distance between the two countries led to organizational and logistical problems. We will not see a co-hosted event again as in 2004 FIFA officially stated that its statutes did not allow co-hosting bids.

2006

The decision to award the 2006 World Cup to Germany was controversial, since it was widely expected that the tournament would take place in South Africa. The final tally was 12 votes to 11 in favour of Germany.

Future Host Cities

Following issues with bribery in the lead up to the vote for the 2006 World Cup host city, FIFA has decided to rotate the hosting of the final tournaments between its confederations. At present, the host country is decided six years before the tournament, in a vote by FIFA's executive committee.

2010

The first World Cup bidding process under continental rotation was the 2010 World Cup, in which FIFA accepted five bids from African nations. The winning nation was South Africa, making it the first World Cup held in Africa. It will be the largest sporting event ever held on that continent, as the Olympics have yet to visit there.

2014

Although the vote will not be made until 2008, The 2014 World Cup, which FIFA has earmarked for the South American region, is expected to be held in Brazil since the South American Football Confederation has already made it their choice.

2018

Several nations have expressed interest in hosting the 2018 World Cup.