Disunity In African Coalition May Cost Morocco The Hosting Of 2026 World Cup

CRACK IN AFRICAN COALITION MAY COST MOROCCO THE HOSTING OF 2026 WORLD CUP By Admin There is a World Cup contest for Morocco before the Russia 2018 World Cup. On the eve of the Russia 2018 World Cup kick-off, the African kingdom will know its fate on the bid to host the 2026 World Cup. Morocco’s bid is its fifth after those of 1994, 1998, 2006 and 2010. The country was very close at winning the bid on three of the four previous attempts. This time, it is a two-horse race as Morocco is up against a united bid of US, Mexico and Canada – all countries with large landmass. US president, Donald Trump has thrown his political eight behind the united bid. Potentially, Morocco has an African base support of 54 votes out of a possible total of 211. But according to a report by Reuters, there exist a crack in the African coalition as some countries have withdrawn support for Morocco. Liberia for instance is reportedly behind the “United bid” and South Africa’s government warned its football association not to vote for Morocco with whom it has strained relations. Morocco is now appealing to European sentiments, claiming a World Cup in the kingdom is akin to hosting it in Europe owing to its proximity to the region. Reuters reports that Morocco sent its bid chief Hicham El Amrani to Johannesburg last week to meet regional FA presidents, and the Americans, who have former FIFA competitions director Jim Brown running their bid, will do so this weekend, attempting to persuade wavering voters to get behind them. Also vital to the process is the bid evaluation report that FIFA is due to publish before the Congress, possibly over the next few days. In April it sent evaluators to Mexico City, Atlanta, Toronto and New York and then straight on to four of Morocco’s proposed venues. Previous bid inspections were seen as symbolic but revised bidding rules allow for the evaluation team to disqualify a candidate before the ballot even takes place. This is because the 2026 finals will comprise 48 teams for the first time, severely testing the capacity of a host. This is the strong point of the joint North American bid with 23 venues which they claim will help FIFA achieve new records for attendance and revenue, increasingly vital for the world governing body which has been feeling a financial pinch. Morocco’s bid plays heavily on the country’s passion for football and its fan culture, relatively compact size, proximity to Europe, climate and the emotional appeal of holding only the second tournament on the continent after 2010 in South Africa. Morocco has already made unsuccessful bids to host the finals in 1994, 1998, 2006 and 2010, although it was close on three occasions. The country was second to the U.S. for 1994, behind France for 1998 and just lost out to South Africa for the 2010 finals. Mexico has twice previously hosted the World Cup – in 1970 and 1986 – and the U.S. in 1994. It would be a first for Canada.