Football News: UK Sport Targets Women’s World Cup in 2030s, Shuns Olympic Games
In a strategic shift, UK Sport has set its sights on bringing the prestigious Women’s World Cup to Britain for the first time in the 2030s, while ruling out hosting the Olympic Games for at least the next two decades.
Simon Morton, the deputy CEO of UK Sport, revealed the organization’s evolving focus, which includes a stronger emphasis on urban and e-sports events to better align with changing consumer habits. This decision comes as the rise of Saudi money makes it increasingly challenging to bid for large-scale sporting events.
“The Women’s World Cup is the biggest sporting event that the UK has never hosted, and so in that respect, it has a special appeal to us,” said Morton. “There is definitely an aspiration to host it in the 2030s.”
UK Sport’s focus has shifted towards the societal impacts of major events, particularly in a post-COVID and increasingly digital world, where the ability to bring people together for shared experiences is highly valued.
The organization will closely monitor the selection process for the 2027 Women’s World Cup, as the European bid, which could involve Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, could pave the way for the UK to potentially host the tournament in 2035.
While respecting the interests of other nations, Morton acknowledged that the UK’s mega-event hosting pipeline is tightening, and international rivals are catching up. As a result, UK Sport is evolving its strategy to target events that “resonate and align with evolving consumer habits,” such as urban and e-sports.
However, the organization has ruled out hosting the Olympic Games and the men’s World Cup for at least the next two decades, citing economic challenges and the rise of Saudi money as factors that require a more strategic approach to event selection.
UK Sport’s revised strategy also includes plans to bid for a portion of the Tour de France in 2027, the World Athletics Championships in 2029 or 2031, and the Rugby World Cup in 2035 or 2039. The organization aims to capitalize on the UK’s enduring passion for live sports and its position as the world’s top ticket-buying nation for major sporting events.
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