January 13 – Is Morocco secretly planning to put a spanner in the works of a 2026 CONCACAF World Cup bid?
French-language reports suggest that since Africa would potentially be the biggest beneficiary of expansion to 48 – up from five slots to nine – Morocco may put in a counter-bid.
The host for 2026 is expected to be announced in 2020 and African football chief Issa Hayatou has apparently told French radio that five African countries could stage an enlarged finals: Morocco, Algeria, Egypt, South Africa and Nigeria.
This is a somewhat optimistic assessment. Egypt and Nigeria are regarded by many as being too politically unstable while South Africa can immediately be ruled out after hosting 2010.
Whilst it would be the most obvious African candidate, it seems unlikely Morocco, having lost out four times in bidding for the 1994, 1998, 2006 and 2014 editions, would suddenly have the facilities to host an enlarged competition in 2026 which, in any case, is CONCACAF’s turn under rotation.
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