Playing a Dangerous Game? Human Rights Risks Linked to the 2030 and 2034 FIFA World Cups

The choice of which countries host the 2030 and 2034 FIFA Men’s World Cups is one of the most significant decisions that football’s global governing body can make. Hundreds of thousands of workers will be involved in delivering the tournaments, over a million fans will travel across borders to watch matches, billions more will watch it on TV or online, and enormous sums will be spent on major infrastructure projects. Host countries will gain huge visibility and prestige, while FIFA’s earnings will be vast. This report brings together analysis from human rights organizations, trade unions and fans representatives – including from members of the Sport and Rights Alliance – as well as UN experts, treaty monitoring bodies, government data and media reports. It aims to highlight key risks connected to the hosting of the two World Cups that must be addressed if FIFA and bidding countries – Morocco, Portugal and Spain in 2030, and Saudi Arabia in 2034 – are to prevent human rights violations during their preparation and delivery.