Women's World Cup heading to US in 2031, UK in 2035
The United States is on track to host the 2031 Women's World Cup, FIFA president Gianni Infantino announced on Thursday.
He also confirmed that the 2035 global football competition is expected to take place in the United Kingdom.
The US submitted the only bid for 2031, while the joint bid from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland was the only valid bid for 2035, Infantino told the UEFA Congress in Belgrade, Serbia.
"The path is there for the Women's World Cup to be taking place in '31 and '35 in some great countries and some great nations to boost even more the women's football movement," Infantino said.
Technically, the bids must be formally approved in a vote at next year's FIFA Congress, but that appears to be a foregone conclusion with no other viable bidders ahead of Saturday's deadline.
Infantino said the US bid could potentially include other Concacaf members. The US previously hosted the Women's World Cup in 1999 and 2003.
"We are excited about the opportunity to co-host the 2031 FIFA Women's World Cup and, in collaboration with our Concacaf partners, are committed to delivering a tournament that leaves a lasting legacy -- one that elevates women's soccer across the world and inspires future generations of players and fans," US Soccer said in a statement.
"As FIFA finalizes the number of participating teams in the tournament, we will solidify our partnership structure with fellow Concacaf nations. We look forward to sharing more details and unveiling our full vision for the 2031 FIFA Women's World Cup in the near future."
The UK will be hosting for the first time. "We are honoured to be the sole bidder for the Women's World Cup 2035. Hosting the first FIFA World Cup since 1966 with our home nations partners will be very special. The hard work starts now, to put together the best possible bid by the end of the year," England FA CEO Mark Bullingham said in a statement.
The 2027 Women's World Cup will take place in Brazil with 32 teams and 64 matches from June 24 to July 25.
Spain is the defending champion after breaking through for its first Women's World Cup title in 2023 in Australia and New Zealand.
The 2031 Women's World Cup will expand to 48 teams.
Meanwhile, the 2026 men's FIFA World Cup will take place in the United States, Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19.
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