Football Australia decided against bidding to host to 2034 FIFA World Cup, leaving Saudi Arabia as the only applicant and presumed host.
Tuesday was the deadline to apply to host the tournament, and the application process was open only to countries from the Asia and Oceania regions.
Australia and New Zealand jointly hosted the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, and it was believed Australia was interested in 2034 event.
“We have explored the opportunity to bid to host the FIFA World Cup and — having taken all factors into consideration — we have reached the conclusion not to do so for the 2034 competition,” Football Australia said Tuesday in a statement.
The Australian city of Brisbane is hosting the 2032 Summer Olympics.
The 2026 World Cup will be held in North America, with the United States, Canada and Mexico each hosting games.
The 2030 event will be played in six countries over three continents. South American nations Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay will host early games before action moves to Spain, Portugal and Morocco.
Qatar hosted the 2022 World Cup, won by Argentina.
–Field Level Media