By Kunle Solaja.

FIFA will visit six Moroccan cities in November and December as part of its assessment of candidate venues for the 2030 FIFA World Cup, intensifying preparations for the tournament that Morocco will co-host with Spain and Portugal.

The world football governing body announced on Tuesday that its delegation would tour candidate cities and stadiums across the three host nations to evaluate their suitability for the competition.

A general view shows construction works of the multi-tiered Hassan II Stadium, ahead of the World Cup, in Benslimane, near Casablanca, Morocco, May 23, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone. REUTERS/Ahmed Eljechtimi

The Moroccan cities scheduled for inspection are Agadir, Casablanca, Fez, Marrakech, Rabat and Tangier, an indication of the North African country’s extensive preparations to stage matches at football’s biggest tournament.

The Grand Casablanca Stadium is being designed to hold 115,000 spectators in its bowl.

The visits form part of FIFA’s venue selection process, with the governing body yet to confirm the final list of host cities and stadiums.

The assessment comes amid growing interest in the battle between Morocco and Spain to host the 2030 World Cup final, the tournament’s showpiece match. FIFA has not yet announced the venue for the final.

Beyond Morocco, the inspection programme will cover Lisbon and Porto in Portugal, alongside Barcelona, Bilbao, Las Palmas, Madrid, San Sebastian, Seville and Zaragoza in Spain. FIFA said additional venues could also be visited during the selection process.

The governing body explained that the allocation of matches and the categories of games assigned to individual venues would be determined only after the final host-city list had been approved and preparations for the tournament schedule had advanced.

For Morocco, the inspections represent a significant milestone in its ambition to deliver a successful World Cup alongside its European partners. The country has been positioning itself to welcome supporters from across the globe through its stadium infrastructure and preparations for the historic competition.

The 2030 edition will have a unique format to commemorate the centenary of the World Cup. The tournament’s first three matches will be staged in Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay, honouring the competition’s origins in Uruguay in 1930, before the main tournament continues across Morocco, Spain and Portugal.

Morocco’s six candidate cities will therefore be under scrutiny as FIFA determines which venues will ultimately form part of the tournament’s hosting network.

The final selection will establish the geographical spread of matches across the three principal host nations and clarify the role each city will play in delivering the centenary World Cup.

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