Moroccan football chief claims Casablanca will stage 2030 World Cup final amid Spain hosting row

Casablanca is set to stage the 2030 World Cup final, according to the President of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation, as reported by Spanish news agency EFE on Thursday.

Soccer’s world governing body Fifa has yet to formally announce the venue of the final, with Spain and Morocco in a heated battle to host football’s biggest showpiece match, but Moroccan chief Fouzi Lekjaa is adamant his country will get the nod.

“The province of Benslimane will have the honour of hosting the 2030 World Cup final,” Lekjaa told a political party event in Bouznika, Morocco on Thursday, EFE reported.

Benslimane is a city 60km from Casablanca and the location of the $12 billion Hassan II stadium, which is under construction for the World Cup with an expected capacity of 115,000. It will be the largest football-specific stadium globally.

Requests for comment have been sent to Fifa and the Royal Spanish Football Federation.

The upcoming World Cup will represent a unique tournament, with fixtures taking place across six nations in three continents for the first time. Although the initial three matches will be staged in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, the main host duties are shared between Morocco, Portugal and Spain.

Fifa has not yet settled on all the host cities, though Morocco and Spain are both campaigning for the final.

“Spain should host the final,” Lekjaa’s counterpart at the Royal Spanish Football Federation, Rafael Louzan, told local media earlier this month.

Meanwhile, sports minister Milagros Tolón insisted Spain “deserved” to stage the final, telling Cadena Ser last month: “We are the reigning men’s and women’s World Cup champions, and Spain and Portugal spearheaded the bid for the 2030 World Cup, which Morocco later joined. We have many advantages and strengths as a country.”

Fifa stated in August that press reports claiming President Gianni Infantino had promised the match to Morocco were not true.

A Fifa spokesperson said it was “false and misleading to claim the Fifa president has made any promise in relation to hosting the Fifa World Cup 2030 final. A decision will be made by Fifa in due course.”