FIFA has awarded Morocco multi-hosting rights to the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup from 2025 to 2029.
This means that Morocco will become the first African country to host the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, which will now be held annually.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino announced last year that the FIFA U-17 World Cups for men and women would be held annually and expanded to 48 and 24 teams, respectively.
“Football in Morocco has gone from strength to strength in recent years. While the men’s team reached the last four at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, the women’s team have made such impressive strides, thanks to the support of the government and the Moroccan Football Association, and the talent of the players,” said Infantino, referring to Morocco’s women’s national team reaching the knockout stages of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 on their tournament debut.
“I believe hosting the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup over five years will inspire so many more girls – and boys – to take up football in the country, and as it is the first time the tournament comes to Africa, that inspiration will spread right across the continent.”
FIFA says the aim of multi-year hosting rights is to give countries the chance to build solid organizational foundations for tournaments.
“The new strategy will shape the FIFA U-17 World Cups of the future, shifting them from a stadium-based model to a festival of football. While each year’s tournament will be unique, organisational structures and tournament infrastructure—from football technology and broadcast set-ups to transport and accommodation—will remain in place, reducing costs and increasing efficiency.”
Meanwhile, Morocco is also set to co-host the 2030 FIFA World Cup with its European neighbours Spain and Portugal.
