The World Cup will take place in Saudi Arabia in 2034 - but possibly not until 2035, as FIFA President Gianni Infantino is now suggesting. In addition to the weather, religion also plays a role in the planning.
09.10.2025, 18:13
10.10.2025, 11:10
SDA
Finding a date for the 2034 FIFA World Cup promises to be tricky, and not unexpectedly so. As in Qatar in 2022, the 2034 World Cup with Saudi Arabia as host could also take place in the European winter months - possibly even at the beginning of 2035.
"Of course, we need to look at the calendar, optimize it and see how we can find competition formats that might be a little better suited to the new requirements of the calendar," FIFA President Gianni Infantino told media representatives on the sidelines of the European Club Association (ECA) General Assembly in Rome. The Swiss was quoted by the AP news agency, among others.
As the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan falls in November and December in 2034, FIFA is expected to move the World Cup finals to the beginning of 2035, the portal "The Athletic" reported. Islam is the official state religion in Saudi Arabia.
"The world keeps turning and we must always try to improve," said Infantino, referring to possible hot spells in June and July. World Cups and European Championships usually take place in these two months. In 2022, the World Cup was postponed to November and December due to the extremely hot summer months in Qatar.
