UK explores bid to bring men’s World Cup back home

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham is exploring a potential bid to host the men’s FIFA World Cup in the UK, alongside plans to bring the Olympic Games to northern England, The i Paper reports.

The proposal is part of Burnham’s broader effort to use major sporting events to attract investment, tourism and regeneration beyond London. He reportedly told colleagues at a meeting at No 10 North in Manchester on Friday that he was examining how Britain could host the tournament and had begun discussions with football authorities about a possible campaign.

A source familiar with the talks said the bid was raised in connection with “stadium regeneration.”

The next available World Cups are scheduled for 2038, 2042 and 2046. However, FIFA’s rotation rules could prevent a UK bid for 2038 because the 2030 tournament will be hosted primarily by Spain, Portugal and Morocco.

A 2042 bid could therefore be more realistic, although FIFA has not yet opened the formal bidding process.

Burnham has previously expressed frustration over the UK’s limited role in hosting the men’s tournament. Earlier this month, he described it as “insane” that the country that invented modern football had hosted the World Cup only once, in 1966.

“The country that invented the game, you’d think we would have had a bit more of that attention,” he said.

His plans are closely linked to his campaign for a Northern Olympics, which has the backing of several northern mayors seeking to shift major sporting investment away from London. Burnham has argued that it would not be “fair or right” for London to host the Olympics for a fourth time and has called a Northern Games “what Britain needs right now”.

He is also supporting a bid to bring the 2035 Ryder Cup to Bolton and has welcomed Euro 2028, which will be staged across the UK and Ireland.

A source close to the prime minister said: “He is behind the Olympic bid and was the driving force in persuading us to back the bid to bring the Ryder Cup to Bolton.”

“He’s excited about the Euros 28, which we’re hosting.”

The proposals come as the government launches a Stadium Regeneration Accelerator aimed at supporting major sports projects, investment and housing across England.

By Vafa Guliyeva