Can Britain and Ireland win the World Cup 2030 bid?

The prime minister is calling on England to “bring it home” at tonight’s Euro 2020 playoff against Denmark – but he might mean more than just the tournament’s trophy. 

At a meeting with Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin yesterday, Johnson “lobbied for a joint British and Irish bid” to host the 2030 World Cup, according to The Times.

The England squad and manager Gareth Southgate “have done the nation proud in the Euros”, the prime minister has said, seizing the opportunity to stoke fans’ hopes for a World Cup tournament on home turf within the decade. The other home nations' success was not as glory-wreathed, with Wales knocked out in the second round and Scotland failing to progress past the group stage.

In March, Johnson said he was “very, very keen to bring football home in 2030”. And a joint Britain-Ireland bid “is considered more likely to succeed” than a solo attempt by England, The Times notes. 

Murmurs of the plan have been circulating since 2018, and the following year a feasibility study concluded with “a sense that the right thing to do is go forward” with the idea, said Noel Mooney, then general manager of the Football Association of Ireland. 

The greatest challenge to Britain-Ireland in Europe is likely to be from Spain and Portugal. At the start of June, and before Euro 2020 got under way, the two countries announced that they would also be making a joint bid for the 2030 tournament, with both teams’ players wearing shirts that said “Vamos 2030”. 

Cerefin is said to want “a single European candidate” put forward for the bid in order to avoid splitting the final vote, The Times says. 

“The prospect of a strong counterbid from China appears to be receding,” the newspaper continues. But the New Statesman says “sentimental money” will be on Uruguay’s plans to launch a joint bid with Argentina, Paraguay and Chile. The 2030 World Cup will mark the tournament's 100th anniversary, which was first held in Uruguay. 

Despite the ongoing coronavirus restrictions for people travelling to Britain, exemptions have been made to England’s quarantine rules to allow 2,500 Uefa VIPs to attend the semi-final and final matches at Wembley this week. The decision “has been regarded as helpful in securing support” for a Britain-Ireland 2030 bid, The Times says.  

“If the UK and Ireland 2030 bid has any chance of success it needs the vote of Uefa members,” a senior Uefa official told iNews when the decision was made. “So, in order to get those votes the UK Government has bent over backwards to accommodate those Uefa VIPs at Wembley.” Whether the Three Lions finish triumphant, however, remains to be seen.

Fifa is expected to announce the 2030 host in 2024. Next year’s World Cup will take place in Qatar and the 2026 tournament will see Canada, Mexico and the USA as joint hosts.