Morocco bids for 2026 World Cup

Morocco announced Friday that it will bid to host the 2026 World Cup, providing a challenge to a joint North American project that is aiming to bring soccer’s main event back to the United States for the first time in more than 30 years.

The Moroccan Football Federation released a two-sentence statement confirming its intention to bid. The announcement came on deadline day for countries to express their interest in hosting in 2026.

The United States, Canada and Mexico launched a joint bid in April and had hoped to be awarded the 2026 World Cup unchallenged. But FIFA decided to keep the contest open and Morocco said it had met Friday’s deadline.

The 2026 World Cup is only open to bids from the Americas, Africa and Oceania, with Europe and Asia ineligible because those continents will host the next two World Cups — in Russia in 2018 and in Qatar in 2022.

The 2026 host will be decided in 2020.