Along with our UK partners my Department has been involved in some preliminary work examining the possibility of bidding to jointly host the FIFA Men's World Cup in Ireland and the UK.
The partners involved include the English Football Association, Scottish Football Association, Football Association of Wales, Irish Football Association, Football Association of Ireland and UK Government, Scottish Government, Welsh Assembly Government, Northern Ireland Executive, the Government of Ireland and UK Sport.
FIFA have indicated that the bid process for the 2030 FIFA Men's World Cup will open in 2022, with bids due to be submitted in 2024. Any decision to bid will be made collaboratively, with a formal announcement to follow in due course.