FIFA Says No Decision Yet on Morocco or Spain Hosting 2030 World Cup Final

FIFA has said no final call has been made on whether Morocco or Spain will host the 2030 World Cup final, pushing back after Morocco's football federation chief claimed the game was already heading to Casablanca.

A FIFA spokesperson told the Efe news agency that the decision will be made "in due course," repeating a line the organisation first used on August 5, when it also denied promising Morocco the final in return for political backing for FIFA president Gianni Infantino ahead of elections next March.

The 2030 tournament will be jointly hosted by Spain, Portugal and Morocco, and the row over the final has flared up just months after Spain won this year's World Cup.

Morocco federation president Fouzi Lakjaa told a political rally that the matter was already settled in his country's favour.

"The city of Benslimane will host the World Cup final. Hate it or love it, and if anyone wants to talk on top of that, let them talk," he said, naming the Grand Stade Hassan II, which is still being built there.

Spanish federation president Rafael Louzán pushed back this week, arguing Spain has the stronger claim but admitting nothing has been confirmed.

"We all signed to accept the candidacy... it's too bad that, regarding the final, it wasn't made clear, totally clear, where it is to be played," he said. "Spain, as world champion both in men's and women's football, must host the final."

Several European officials feel the final should stay in Europe, given how large and spread out the 2030 tournament already is. Alongside the three main hosts, Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay will each stage an opening match, marking 100 years since the first World Cup was held entirely in Montevideo in 1930.

Stadium capacity is part of the argument. The Hassan II stadium near Casablanca is being built to hold 115,000 fans. Spain's options include Barcelona's Camp Nou, which will seat 105,000 once renovation work is finished, and Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabéu, which holds 78,297.

The dispute lands at a difficult time for Infantino, who is under pressure after UEFA led a revolt that blocked his plan to sell stakes in the World Cup. Six Arab federations, including Morocco's, have stood by him since. Infantino has visited Morocco twice recently, meeting King Mohammed VI in July and holding a FIFA crisis meeting there in August.

The row also comes as relations between Madrid and Rabat remain tense following last year's incident at the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, where thousands of mostly Moroccan migrants, driven by social media posts, attempted to cross the border. Spain's prime minister said 140 people died in the crossing. Spanish police could not rule out involvement by Moroccan security forces but said it was unlikely the crisis was deliberately orchestrated by Morocco's government.