Indonesia may join Australia and other Southeast Asian countries in bidding to host the 2034 World Cup.
“Australia invited Indonesia to do this,” Indonesian media quoted Erick Thohir, the billionaire chairman of the Indonesian Football Association, as saying on Wednesday. One option would therefore be a joint application with Australia and New Zealand. “Another option is a joint bid with Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.”
Although Saudi Arabia is considered the clear favorite, Football Australia boss James Johnson emphasized last week that his association is continuing to examine the possibility of applying for the 2029 Club World Cup or the 2034 World Cup.
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Malaysia and Singapore have also expressed interest in a joint orientation, emphasized Thohir, who was president of Inter Milan from 2013 to 2018. Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo also responded positively to the proposal, it said. Thohir is also a minister in his cabinet. The talks between the largest country in Southeast Asia and the Australian Football Association have so far been promising.
Saudi Arabia submitted its declaration of intent to apply for the 2034 World Cup to the world association FIFA on Monday. The Council of the World Football Association FIFA had previously announced that the 2030 World Cup would begin with three games in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay and then be played in Morocco, Spain and Portugal. At the same time, FIFA announced that only representatives from Asia and Oceania should apply for the 2034 World Cup in accordance with the rotation principle, which was seen as a clear signal to Saudi Arabia.
