The long road to 2027 Women’s World Cup

FIFA, the international governing body of football, yesterday launched the most robust and comprehensive bidding process in the history of the Fifa Women’s World Cup.

A week after after holding its 73rd Fifa Congress in Kigali, Rwanda, it became clear that three parties will bid for the 2027 edition of the Women’s World Cup. The parties are Brazil and South Africa as well as a joint bid from Netherlands, Germany and Belgium.

The bidding process properly kicks off in just under a month when Fifa’s 211 national associations will be asked to submit their expressions of interest by April 21.

A series of processes will follow until May 17, 2024 when Fifa will announce the name of the 2027 tournament host.

The 37-member Fifa Council, the main decision-making body of the organisation, will select up to three bids. Once these bids have been announced, they will have another opportunity to confirm their interest in the bidding by submitting the Bidding Agreement.

This document, which must be submitted by May 19, 2023, will be based on the Bidding Regulations and the decision by the Fifa Council regarding the content, agreements and information required to be included in the bid.

Next, Fifa will invite the interested parties to a bid workshop and observer programme, in August during the Fifa Women’s World Cup 2023 in Australia and New Zealand. The goal of the workshops will be to provide all the relevant operational, legal and other information on the bidding process and/or the staging and hosting of the competition.

The next important date on the 2023 calendar is December 8 when the member associations will be required to submit their official bids to Fifa.

In 2024, the bidding process reaches its climax, and the first important date is in February when Fifa will announce details for on-site inspection visits to bidding countries.

Fifa’s Bid Evaluation Report will be published in May 2024.

Fifa secretary-general Fatma Samoura, the first female secretary-general of Fifa, said the process for the Women’s World Cup 2027 maintains all key elements from the successful 2023 bidding process.

In the interests of openness, Fifa will allow for the publication of key content and documentation, the inclusion of robust rules of conduct and the implementation of a comprehensive evaluation model.

“The Fifa Women’s World Cup 2027 will build on the legacy of the record-breaking edition that Australia and New Zealand are due to organise in a few months,” said Samoura.

“In line with Fifa’s commitment to women’s football, this bidding process sets new standards and puts us on track to host an outstanding event in 2027 on and off the pitch.”

After last week’s congress in Rwanda, Samoura, a former United Nations employee, spent some time in her native Senegal to promote women’s football amongst other things. Yesterday she attended the laying of the foundation stone of the Demba Diop Stadium, a dedicated women’s football venue.

Although the bidding process has been clearly defined, Fifa may stage additional seminars or workshops.