Ceferin raises hopes of British-irish World Cup
A proposed British and Irish bid for the 2030 World Cup received a boost yesterday as the president of Uefa voiced strong opposition to Spain joining forces with Morocco on a rival campaign.
Aleksander Ceferin said he strongly preferred a European-only bid. There are concerns that Spain and Morocco could gain an unfair advantage as a cross-confederation proposal might gain more votes, from across Europe and Africa.
“I’m not in favour of cross-confederation bids,” he told a meeting of Uefa executives in Dublin. “Someone should say to politicians it’s not up to them to speak about who will be hosts for sports events or not.
“I’ve seen many politicians saying they will be candidates for this or that, but they need to speak to their member associations.
“But, no, I’m not in favour of that [the Morocco] idea and I will do whatever I can to have one European bid because that raises the chances of Europe hosting the World Cup.”
The football associations of England and Wales released statements in September confirming the five British and Irish governing bodies were “in discussions about the feasibility of bidding to be the European candidate” to stage the event.
Uefa’s meeting yesterday also signed off details of a third European club competition from 2021 set to sit below the Europa League in status. The Premier League and English Football League are seeking clarification from the Football Association on how the English teams will qualify.
“The EFL is in contact with the FA to fully understand the potential ramifications of the introduction of a second Europa League competition, and the impact it may or may not have on EFL competitions,” the EFL said.
Meanwhile, Ceferin confirmed video assistant referees would be used in the Champions League knockout rounds from February. He said: “We are ready to use VAR earlier than initially planned and are convinced it will be beneficial for our competitions as it will provide valuable help to match officials and reduce incorrect decisions.”
Pep Guardiola, the Manchester City manager, said: “I’m delighted with that. The Premier League is the last one and sooner or later it will happen. This season, the second goal against Shakhtar [Donetsk, when Raheem Sterling tripped himself up] was a ridiculous penalty. So, it’s not just to talk about my benefit.”