Spaniards Demand Morocco's Exclusion from 2030 World Cup
Political parties from left to right unite in demanding Morocco not host the World Cup following the dramatic migrant wave in Ceuta.
Political parties from left to right unite in demanding Morocco not host the World Cup following the dramatic migrant wave in Ceuta.
The organization of the 2030 FIFA World Cup, slated to be held in Spain, Portugal, and Morocco, has come under serious question. Several Spanish political parties, from the far left to the far right, have called for Morocco's exclusion from hosting duties due to the recent migrant crisis in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta and allegations of human rights abuses.
In late July 2026, within just a few days, as many as 72,000 migrants illegally entered Ceuta, the Spanish enclave in northern Morocco. According to data from Spain's Ministry of the Interior in Madrid, this is a record number in such a short period. Although 70,000 of them have already returned to Morocco, the event has triggered strong reactions on the Spanish political scene.
The leader of the left-wing party Podemos, Pablo Fernández, posted on social media platform X that "Spain should not organize a World Cup with a dictatorship like Morocco, which does not respect human rights." A similar stance was taken by Nahuel González López, a deputy from the Sumar party, who stated that "it is impossible to organize the 2030 World Cup with a monarchy that threatens and uses desperate people for its geostrategic interests."
On the other side of the political spectrum, the far-right party Vox highlighted in a statement that the crisis "raises the question of Rabat's ability to guarantee the security and control conditions required by an event that brings together millions of fans." Vox has submitted a bill in the Spanish parliament to exclude Morocco from organizing the World Cup, although Le Figaro notes that this proposal has no chance of success since hosting is decided solely by FIFA.
Spain's Sumar party went a step further, presenting a bill in the Congress on August 6, 2026, proposing that Spain completely withdraw from organizing the World Cup. The initiative suggests that the Spanish government discuss this option with FIFA, the Royal Spanish Football Federation, and the Portuguese government. Pressure is also coming from Portugal, where the Green Party has also called for Morocco's withdrawal from the organization, but so far they have received no response.
A FIFA spokesperson told AFP that "a decision will be made in due course," denying media reports that a decision on the host city for the final has already been made. It is worth recalling that at the end of 2024, FIFA officially awarded the organization of the 2030 World Cup to three countries, Spain, Portugal, and Morocco, which were the only candidates. Le Figaro reminds that in history, there has never been a case of a country being stripped of World Cup hosting rights, even amid controversies like those surrounding the awarding of the 2022 World Cup to Qatar.
