Fresh off the high of co-hosting the biggest event in cricket’s calendar, it appears that New Zealand is eyeing off the biggest fish of them all – the FIFA World Cup.
Former New Zealand cricketer Martin Snedden has told Reuters that our friends across the ditch are considering a joint Australian-New Zealand bid for the 2026 or 2030 World Cup.
Snedden, who headed up the 2011 Rugby World Cup and was Chief Executive of New Zealand Cricket during the joint bid with Australia to host the 2015 Cricket World Cup, said that these two events proved New Zealand was capable of pulling off major events, and should strike while the iron’s hot.
“I’m thrilled by the way in which New Zealand has proved its capability with those two events. We are now on a bit of a roll,” he said.
“We have a lot of capable people over New Zealand and a lot of goodwill. If we wait too long and aren’t aspirational then that will dissipate.”
While Snedden has contacted the NZ Government, New Zealand Football and Sports New Zealand, he is yet to approach Football Federation Australia, who bid to host the 2022 World Cup but controversially lost out to Qatar. FFA declined to comment when contacted by Reuters.
Snedden told the New Zealand Herald that if a joint bid was negotiated, Australia would host 70 percent of the tournament, with two or three of the eight pools to be held in New Zealand.
New Zealand already has hosted FIFA events, including the men’s Under-17 World Cup in 1999 and the first women’s Under-17s in 2008, as well as hosting this year’s men’s Under-20 World Cup next month.
There are a number of issues to consider, including the fact that Australia are in the Asian Confederation, while New Zealand are in the Oceania group. At this stage, Snedden says it’s just an idea.
But what an idea it is.
