“Nigeria must put in a bid”- CAF President Patrice Motsepe on Africa hosting the World Cup

Nigeria last hosted a major international event in 2009, and the last time an African hosted the World Cup was in 2010.

The President of the Confederation of African Football, Patrice Motsepe, has expressed his views on the possibility of an African country hosting the World Cup tournament in the future, Soccernet.ng reports.

Speaking at the final press conference of the ongoing 2023 Africa Cup of Nations held at the Main Media Centre at Palace de la Culture, the South African football administrator emphasised that Nigeria should be among the countries to consider bidding for the hosting rights.

The last time an African nation hosted the World Cup was in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010. The bidding process for hosting the tournament finals was exclusively open to African nations, with South Africa ultimately being selected over Egypt and Morocco by FIFA in 2004.

Nigeria has also previously hosted an international football event, the thirteenth edition of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, held from 24 October to 15 November 2009.

Responding to a query from a journalist about the potential for another African country to host the World Cup, Motsepe emphasised Nigeria’s potential as a candidate.

“Nigeria must put in a bid. The Nigerian president (Bola Tinubu) is coming to watch the final on Sunday. I will have a conversation with him about it,” he stated.

Morocco, in partnership with Portugal and Spain, is set to host the 2030 World Cup, marking the first time the tournament will be jointly hosted by two continents.