UK and Ireland Submit Joint Bid to Host 2035 Women’s World Cup
Image Credits: Wikimedia Commons
On Friday 28th November the English, Scottish, Welsh, and Irish FAs announced that they would be submitting a joint bid to host the 2035 Women’s World Cup, which has sparked excitement amongst fans and players alike: the biggest competition in the footballing world is set to be coming to the UK.
Although the appointment of the hosts won’t occur until the FIFA Congress in Vancouver in April 2026, as the sole bidder to host the 2035 World Cup, the UK is expecting to be approved as hosts, so preparations for the games can get underway.
Should the bid be approved, this will be the first World Cup hosted in the UK since England’s victorious run in 1966. More importantly, it will be the first Women’s World Cup to be hosted across the four nations. The bid was submitted using the slogan ‘All Together’, reflecting the UK’s desire to unite and empower female footballers around the world. Furthermore, 22 host stadiums have been announced as part of the bid, and by locating stadiums in each of the four nations of the UK, a message of unity and togetherness is promoted. If the bid is successful, each host nation will automatically qualify for the tournament, meaning Northern Ireland and Wales will appear in the competition for the first time in their history, giving players and fans an unforgettable opportunity to represent and celebrate their nations.
The 2035 World Cup would be only the second iteration of the new World Cup format in the women’s game, which would see the format copy the men’s current one; expanding from 32 to 48 teams. This shows intent from FIFA to continue expanding and developing the women's game, bringing it in line with the men’s game. The tournament is said to be the most accessible yet, with 63 million people living within 2 hours of a host venue. This would hopefully encourage locals to buy the proposed 4.5 million tickets that will be put on sale, generating huge amounts of profit for British football.
The UK is primed to host a competition of this nature, as the four nations already have multiple purpose-built stadiums that have large seated capacities. Over double the number of stadiums used in the 2023 World Cup will be used at the 2035 World Cup, the majority of which have far larger capacity than those used in Australia and New Zealand, further showing the demand for tickets to watch stars play on the biggest stage. Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated that, ‘our bid to host the 2035 FIFA Women’s World Cup shows the UK’s passion for football’. All bids require the support of their government, but having this public support only emphasises further the UK’s desire to champion women’s football.
The proposed plans for the 2035 World Cup bring hope and opportunity for women’s football. It sends a message of unity, proving that the world can be united by the beautiful game.