Fifa praises ‘impressive’ Saudi World Cup 2034 bid

• Report warns of building deadline risk
• Human rights ‘pose a complication’
• Ratification due December 11

The vast construction projects proposed by Saudi Arabia for the 2034 Fifa World Cup are impressive, but present a medium risk of not being completed in time, football’s governing body Fifa has warned.

In a 110-page bid evaluation document, Fifa’s inspection team said Saudi Arabia must invest “significant effort and time” to fulfill its ambitious promises for the tournament and to comply with the federation’s standards.

Saudi Arabia is the only candidate in the running to host the 2034 tournament, and its bid to hold the World Cup in 10 years’ time was fast-tracked in October 2023. 

It will be ratified by the Fifa Congress on December 11.

Saudi Arabia has proposed 15 stadiums across five host cities, Riyadh, Jeddah, Neom, Abha and Al Khobar, of which eight will be built completely from scratch. 

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Three of the 15 stadiums are already under construction in preparation for hosting the AFC Asian Cup in 2027.

Fifa said: “The bid projects a range of impressive stadiums that, when built or refurbished, will offer state-of-the-art infrastructure.”

However, it assigned a medium risk profile to the stadium aspect of the project. The bid evaluation said: “Due to the overall scale of the stadium projects, as well as the novel designs and configurations proposed in some cases, there is an elevated risk profile.”

Project overruns

The Middle East continues to suffer from some of the world’s longest project overruns, according to the seventh annual CRUX Insight Report by the global dispute resolution consultancy HKA, published in October. Construction delays have meant timelines are extending by 80 percent on average, against the nearly 60 percent globally.

Suzannah Fairbairn, a partner in the law firm Dentons’ Middle East construction and engineering practice in Dubai, told AGBI that such challenges are only bound to increase in the next six years as demand for materials and labour ramps up before the deadline for Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.

Saudi Arabia’s plans for accommodation for the 2034 World Cup also pose a medium risk, given the influx of visitors expected for the tournament.

A significant amount of new hotel capacity in host cities is required. New-build hotels will represent 43 percent of World Cup capacity in Riyadh and more than 80 percent in Neom and Abha, the capital city of Aseer Province, near the Red Sea in southwest Saudi Arabia.

The Ministry of Tourism plans 230,000 new rooms in the World Cup host cities by 2034, an effort that is primarily aimed at accommodating an expected growth in tourism unrelated to the football tournament.

Fifa said: “The overall scale of planned inventory proposed, coupled with the compact footprint, slightly increases the risk profile.”

Human rights

Transport in the country also received a medium risk rating, given the novel designs and scale of work required.

While it is not clear exactly how much the bid will cost Saudi Arabia, it is significantly large enough that it is diverting funds from other megaprojects across the country.

The Fifa report also said that human rights in Saudi Arabia “pose a complication” to the Saudi bid, but the host “commits to upholding international human and labour rights in the full life cycle of the competition”.

Mohammed AlWabely, assistant deputy mayor for iconic projects at Riyadh Region Municipality, said last week that the Saudi government was introducing incentives to address investor concerns as it sought to draw private funding into flagship projects, including infrastructure and cultural landmarks.

“There’s a huge opportunity for the private sector to come and fund projects,” AlWabely said at the Big 5 construction conference in Dubai. “The government wants to engage the private sector actively.”