The Spanish and Portuguese football federations could include Morocco in their joint bid for the organization of the 2030 World Cup in place of Ukraine, which was also promised to apply there.
In any case, this is what the Madrid newspaper AS understands in its edition of Thursday March 9, which indicated that “The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and the Portuguese Football Federation are working on the option of including Morocco. His integration will be studied exhaustively in the days and weeks to come, but his final membership seems to be linked to the withdrawal of Ukraine from the joint bid of Spain and Portugal to host the World Cup event.”.
This eventuality, long remained a wishful thinking for the president of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), Fouzi Lekjaa would however materialize only under the condition or Ukraine would fall. In fact, uA corruption case involving UFA president Andriy Pavelko has shaken the Ukrainian football federation.
Also, the presence of Ukraine within the Iberian tandem is falling apart. The President of the Ukrainian Football Federation, currently arrested (since last November) is under investigation for fraud and money laundering and faces up to 12 years in prison. The Spanish federation, not wanting to be involved in this scandal, would have decided to put Ukraine on the sidelines.
Seen effectively from this angle, the Ukrainian presence in the Iberian candidacy could turn against the joint candidacy, hence the desire to consider a plan B with Morocco, at least until the situation is settled and everything is clear. As a reminder, the two Iberian countries had added Ukraine in the race to organize the 2030 World Cup last October. An inclusion which had received “the support of Aleksander Ceferin, president of UEFA”, indicated then the Spanish Football Federation.
IMorocco had been designated to apply with the two countries at first, but it was refused. Indeed, his ppresence was initially ruled out due to the veto by FIFA and UEFA against joint bids from countries belonging to different confederations. But the reservation accepted recently with the proposal of Greece, Turkey and Saudi Arabia now opens the way for this privilege and therefore allows both the Spanish Federation and the Portuguese Federation to consider the company of Morocco.
In Qatar, in December Fouzi Lekjaa, the president of the FRMF had not hidden his ambition to see Morocco integrate the Hispano-Portuguese candidacy, “We want this organization to be shared between the African continent and the European continent, in order to show the world that the relationship between Africa and Europe is not just about illegal immigration and the fight against this phenomenon. Rather, it is a relationship in which civilizations and cultures can meet“, he explained in statements to the press.
FIFA will announce in June the list of conditions to be met by candidates for the organization of the 2030 World Cup and, in 2024, the final choice will be formalized.