FIFA clears UK and US-led bids for 2035 and 2031 Women's World Cups
FIFA has confirmed that the joint bids for the 2031 and 2035 Women's World Cups meet the minimum hosting requirements and will be presented to the Extraordinary FIFA Congress on November 23.
The United Kingdom's bid for the 2035 tournament is a joint submission between The Football Association, The Irish Football Association, The Scottish Football Association and The Football Association of Wales. FIFA previously revealed it was the only valid proposal for the tournament. The proposal includes 19 stadiums across 15 host cities, with Wembley Stadium in London selected to stage the final. The bid builds on the nations' experience of hosting major international tournaments, including UEFA Women's Euro 2022 and preparations for Euro 2028, per ESPN.
The 2035 tournament will be contested by 48 teams as part of an expansion starting with the 2031 edition. The 2031 tournament will be hosted by the United States alongside Costa Rica, Jamaica and Mexico. It will be the first edition to feature 48 teams, expanding from the current 32-team format. That bid features 20 proposed stadiums, including four potential final venues – Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, AT&T Stadium in Dallas, SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles and MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. FIFA expects the 2031 competition to attract approximately 4.5 million spectators, while noting that some venues will require artificial playing surfaces to be replaced with natural grass.
For the United Kingdom bid, Belfast's Windsor Park is one of 19 stadiums proposed to host matches at the 2035 Women's World Cup. The report states the stadium will expand from 18,500 to 23,750 by 2035. Windsor Park is set to host World Cup matches up to the quarter-final stage. While assessing Windsor Park's suitability, FIFA said "hospitality seating falls marginally short of the benchmark but is considered acceptable". As part of a planned redevelopment, "a hybrid‑grass system with tournament‑compliant field‑of‑play dimensions will be installed" at Windsor Park and "an upgrade of the floodlighting system is planned". FIFA concluded that Windsor Park is "a well‑established national venue with maintained facilities and an experienced operational structure. Some technical and infrastructural upgrades have been identified, but no material delivery risks are apparent, subject to planned improvements being implemented". Windsor Park received a stadium score of 3.6 – Everton's new Hill Dickinson Stadium and Wembley led the way with scores of 4.6.
It is expected Northern Ireland will seal automatic qualification to the 2035 Women's World Cup through their status as co-hosts and it marks the first FIFA tournament to be held in the country. Speaking in April 2025 about the prospect of Northern Ireland hosting the tournament, Irish FA CEO Patrick Nelson said: "It is great news that the home nations are the sole bidder for the FIFA Women's World Cup 2035."
"We look forward to hosting games at the tournament and playing our part in what I have no doubt will be a fantastic tournament."
"There's still a lot of hard work to be done along with our partners in bringing it all together, however this will be a brilliant opportunity to show the world what Northern Ireland and Belfast have to offer."
Both proposals will now be put to FIFA members for a decision later this month.
