By Andrew Warshaw
March 15 – The head of Morocco’s 2026 bid team says his country is in it to win it and is not simply a stalking horse for the favoured rival North American candidate.
With both challengers due to hand in their respective bid books to FIFA by later today, outlining their plans for the tournament, Morocco’s bid CEO, Hicham El Amrani (pictured), insists the four-time losers are not indulging in “a communications stunt”.
“We are here to win,” El Amrani told the BBC.
Morocco has previously tried and failed to win hosting rights for the 1994, 1998, 2006 and 2010 editions but is gambling on a compact World Cup in contrast to the burgeoning three-nation US-Canada-Mexico bid.
The Moroccans are hoping such a strategy will not backfire especially as 2026 marks the first time the World Cup will be expanded to 48 finalists.
Bid book details must cover a range of factors including stadiums, training venues, hotels and transport. A FIFA evaluation panel will then decide whether the two bids meet the requirements before approving them for the vote on June 13 at the FIFA Congress in Moscow.
Morocco has considerable catching up to do having only entered the fray in January, several months after their rivals launched their bid.
“We need to convince not only the congress, (but also) the technical team of FIFA,” said El Amrani, former secretary-general of the Confederation of African Football.
Considerable thought, he said, had been given to the 48-nation format.
“You cannot bid for such a tournament, especially one that’s been increased to 48 teams, without careful consideration – it is not a light decision. I don’t think we need to highlight the passion that we have for the game so for us, (bidding) combines all the important factors and provides joy and pride to our country.”
“We want to celebrate the world and receive people in our country, showcase the beauty of our country, its diversity and also boost the social, economic and human development of our country and the continent.”
Handing over the bid books effectively represents the starting gun in the race to land 2026 which will be decided for the first time by an open vote of FIFA’s entire membership rather than by an elite few FIFA bigwigs as in the past.
The Moroccans are planning a globally streamed press conference in Casablanca on Saturday and know they have some convincing to do, with United 2026 some distance in front given the commercial advantages of a North American bid and the fact that no new stadium build would be needed.
Morocco’s 12 cities are reported to comprise Casablanca, Rabat, El Jadida, Marrakech, Agadir, Ouarzazate, Oujda, Nador, Fez, Meknes, Tangier, and Tetouan. Seven would be new builds, including a 93,000-seater showpiece venue in Casablanca, plus five upgrades.
For the US, another shock defeat following the 2010 vote that handed 2022 to Qatar in the final round is unthinkable but Morocco are convinced they are closing the gap.
Moulay Hafid Elalamy, Chair of the Bid Committee and Minister of Industry for Morocco, stressed no internal flights will take longer than an hour. “There is only one time zone for the whole territory and we have an excellent motorway and airport connectivity,” he added.
With most of Africa in the bag, Morocco’s challenge is to gain the votes of as many other federations as possible. This has already been boosted by the fact that France is reported to have expressed its support for the underdogs given the two countries’ historical and political links.
Other European federations could well follow suit as the lobbying intensifies.
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