2027 Women's World Cup: Brazil to host after beating Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands joint-bid

Brazil have been selected to host the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup, becoming the first South American country to do so. The FIFA Council made the decision at its Congress in Bangkok, Thailand.

Brazil’s bid was preferred over a joint bid from Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands. This follows reports indicating that FIFA favoured Brazil after the US and Mexico withdrew their joint bid to focus on the 2031 World Cup.

FIFA’s evaluation report gave Brazil’s bid a score of 4 out of 5, higher than the European bid’s 3.7. Brazil outperformed in accommodation, fan festival venues, and stadiums, while the European bid scored better for team and referee facilities. FIFA also labeled the European bid as “high risk” due to legal and contractual issues that could increase hosting costs.

The European bid faced criticism for proposing smaller stadiums, with six seating less than 40,000. In contrast, all of Brazil’s proposed stadiums meet this capacity, which many believe is crucial for the growth of women’s soccer.

The 2027 Women’s World Cup aims to build on the success of the 2023 tournament in Australia and New Zealand, which set new attendance and viewership records and generated $570 million in revenue. This highlights the economic potential of women’s soccer.

Despite Brazil’s rich soccer history, women’s soccer has lagged due to historical restrictions.

Women’s soccer was banned in Brazil from 1941 to 1979, and the first women’s league started only in 2007. However, interest is growing, with 11 million people watching Brazil’s first game at the 2023 World Cup.

The women’s game is expanding rapidly in the US and Europe, but Brazil’s national team has also achieved significant success. They were runners-up at the 2007 Women’s World Cup, won silver at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, and boast star player Marta, a six-time FIFA Women’s Player of the Year.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/article/2024/may/17/brazil-to-host-2027-womens-world-cup-fifa-european-bid-belgium-netherlands-germany

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