FIFA Presents Guide For 2026 World Cup Bid Process

Football's ruling body FIFA on Tuesday published the guidelines for the 2026 World Cup bid process, aiming to restore credibility after various affairs through transparency and ethical principles.

     In the 35-page guidelines, FIFA president Gianni Infantino and secretary general Fatma Samoura said in a joint foreword "the process to select the host ... must not be open to even one iota of doubt.

     "It is FIFA’s responsibility towards the world of football to conduct these bidding and selection procedures in an ethical, transparent, objective and unbiased way. By the time we announce who will host the 2026 FIFA World Cup, every football fan around the globe should be able to know why that choice has been made."

     The 2026 edition will be the first with 48 teams and the first World Cup to see the host elected by the 211 FIFA members at their congress, and no longer by the former executive committee.

     The United States, Canada and Mexico are set for a joint bid, and Morocco is also interested.

     The bid process includes a bid evaluation task force to look into the bids, and their reports will be looked into by the FIA council which creates a shortlist for the congress vote.

     Potential hosts must "formally commit to conducting their activities based on sustainable event management principles and to respecting international human rights and labour standards according to the United Nations’ guiding principles," FIFA said.

     The election of the host is planned for June 13, 2018, but if no candidate is chosen by the congress the bid process would continue for another two years until May 2020.

     Potential bidders from Europe and Asia could enter the race in such a scenario, after being initially barred because the previous two World Cups are in their area, Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022.