Riyad Mahrez Hails Saudi Arabia’s Bid to Host the 2034 FIFA World Cup

• Saudi Arabia has announced its intention to bid for the 2034 World Cup
• Mahrez is among the big-name players to hail news of the bid
• Mahrez joined Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli during the summer transfer window

Saudi Arabia’s decision to bid to host the 2023 FIFA World Cup has been hailed by some of the top players in the Saudi Pro League, including Riyad Mahrez.

The Algerian forward was among the top players to quit mainstream Europe for the Arab country in the summer transfer window after penning a lucrative deal with Al-Ahli.

According to Daily Star, Saudi Arabia has announced its intention to bid to host the 2034 World Cup, having already been confirmed as host for the 2023 FIFA Club World Cup and 2027 AFC Asian Cup.

The former Manchester City winger voiced his full support for Saudi Arabia’s ambitions as he went on social media to declare his support of the bid from the Middle Eastern country.

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The statement came after FIFA invited Asia and Oceania nations to bid for the 2034 tournament.

Saudi happy with 2023 World Cup bid

Meanwhile, Saudi Minister of Sport Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal has declared that hosting a FIFA World Cup in 2034 would help us achieve our dream of becoming a leading nation in world sport, Reuters reports.

The Saudi announcement came shortly after FIFA named Morocco, Spain and Portugal as hosts of the 2030 World Cup, with Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay hosting the opening matches to mark the tournament's centenary.

Asian Football Confederation president Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa also welcomed the decision as the Arab nation bids to host another tournament after the success of the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Benzema backs Saudi Arabia’s World Cup bid

Earlier, Sports Brief reported A day after announcing they will bid to host the 2034 World Cup, Karim Benzema - who plays in the Saudi Pro League - has backed the country's bid.

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Benzema, who plays for reigning SPL champions, Al-Ittihad, took to X (formerly Twitter) to support Saudi Arabia's ambitious bid.

Benzema is one of the top players from European clubs who have moved to the SPL this year. Those players, including Cristiano Ronaldo, have raised the profile of the league.