World Cup 2030: The Beautiful Game & The Beauty of Home

The Washington, D.C.-based think tank The Atlantic Council held a forum this week on global soccer, the World Cup, and the unique role that high-profile sporting events can play in national development, regional cooperation, and global security cooperation. One panel featured Youssef Amrani, Morocco's ambassador to the United States.

The selection process to host the FIFA World Cup is often filled with high drama and strong lobbying efforts. But the next two versions of the World Cup will feature something new: joint hosting by three neighboring nations. Next year, the United States, Mexico, and Canada will team up to host. In 2030, the privilege goes to Morocco, Spain and Portugal. Joint hosts and multilateral cooperation reflect a larger phenomenon that is already found in fields like economic development, aviation/transportation, and global health surveillance.

At the Atlantic Council forum, Victor Montagliani, president of the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF), described the successful collaborative process required to create a three-way host bid: "A little bit of Canadian maple syrup with Mexican churro onto the United States ... What seemingly is laughable becomes entirely achievable."

Creating a regional synergy around soccer is worth the effort and cost. The 2022 FIFA World Cup attracted one million foreign visitors to Qatar, a nation that previously attracted only modest numbers of non-Gulf region tourists. Nearly three-and-a-half million people watched at least one match in person in Qatar. Via television and streaming, over one and a half billion people watched the 2022 World Cup final, eleven times the viewership of America's largest single sporting spectacle this year, the NFL Super Bowl.

Morocco's showcase in 2030: Homegrown talent

"We just won the Under-20 World Cup!" boasted Ambassador Amrani to the Atlantic Council audience. He was acknowledging the years of preparation that had gone into crea