2026 World Cup: the Royal Moroccan Football Federation challenges new criteria introduced by FIFA

The Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) has challenged FIFA's scoring system and technical criteria for the selection process for the organisers of the 2026 World Cup, according to a letter from the FRMF to FIFA on 25/03/2018 (see downloads).

The scoring system, which "adds new technical criteria that was not included as part of the original criteria transmitted by FIFA", was transmitted "on 14/03/2018 at 16:18, less than 24 hours before the filing of Morocco's bid book" and "just over 48 hours before the regulatory deadline on 16/03/2018 at 17:00," wrote Fouzi Lekjaa, president of the FRMF to Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA.

On 13/06/2018, the eve of the opening match of the 2018 World Cup, the FIFA Congress in Moscow (RUS) is scheduled to nominate the organisers of the 2026 World Cup. Two bids have been submitted, one by Morocco and a joint bid by the trio of Mexico, Canada and the United States.

• This is the fifth time that Morocco has been a candidate for the organisation of a World Cup, after bids filed for the 1994 (United States), 1998 (France), 2006 (Germany) and…