The FIFA men’s World Cup is the most-watched sporting event in the world with enormous social, political and economic impacts that go well beyond the game itself.
It has also long been mired in controversy, scandal and human rights violations.
In December 2024, 211 FIFA member associations will vote on whether to approve Morocco, Portugal and Spain as hosts of the 2030 men’s World Cup and Saudi Arabia as hosts of the 2034 tournament. To be selected, each of these bids is supposed to meet binding criteria on how they will protect workers’ rights, prevent discrimination, uphold the right to housing, guarantee freedom of expression and more.
This Amnesty International report analyzes the human rights strategies submitted by the bidding nations for both tournaments, comparing them with FIFA’s requirements and a detailed risk assessment produced by Amnesty International in June 2024. It concludes that neither bid has adequately demonstrated how they have met FIFA’s human rights criteria. While a more credible human rights strategy is required for the 2030 tournament, the outstanding risks in Saudi Arabia are so severe that FIFA should halt the bidding process for the 2034 tournament until major reforms are introduced.