Saudi Arabia’s growing influence and massive spending in global sports have been detailed in research ahead of the kingdom being confirmed by FIFA next week as the 2034 World Cup host.

The 2034 World Cup, which is set to be held in Saudi Arabia, is in talks to move its traditional summer date to January as the country wishes to avoid a clash with the Ramadan period

FIFA World Cup bid evaluation report has, remarkably, awarded Saudi Arabia’s bid for the 2034 World Cup the joint highest bidding score ever. Human rights groups, however, have slammed FIFA for “whitewashing” the country’s human rights record and called out glossing over environmental concerns.

FIFA has approved the quality of Saudi Arabia's bid to host the 2034 World Cup in a 110-page evaluation that noted higher risks related to human rights in the oil-rich kingdom.

Saudi Arabia's 2034 World Cup bid received a higher technical score from FIFA than the 2026 joint bid by the United States, Canada and Mexico even though the Middle East nation has yet to construct several stadiums proposed for the tournament.

Saudi Arabia is on course to host the 2034 men’s World Cup with FIFA ‘approving’ its human rights record in a report released overnight. World football’s governing body awarded the Saudi bid a score of 4.

Saudi Arabia is set to stage a winter World Cup in 2034 after a FIFA evaluation report highlighted the likelihood of the competition being played "between October-April."

Saudi Arabia is poised to be confirmed as the host of the 2034 men’s World Cup after FIFA approved its human rights record. The country was classified as ‘medium risk’ for human rights in FIFA’s evaluation report, despite warnings that migrant workers could face significant risks, including fatalities, during preparations for the tournament.

The vast construction projects proposed by Saudi Arabia for the 2034 Fifa World Cup are impressive, but present a medium risk of not being completed in time, football’s governing body Fifa has warned.