Saudi Arabia has defer to plans to build 11 stadiums – including one set 350 metres above ground level – as part of the country’s bid to host the 2034 World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The proposed stadium in Neom, an as-yet-unbuilt city in the north-west of the country, will only be accessible via high-speed lifts and driverless vehicles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The arena, which is part of the country’s ‘The Line’ project to expand the kingdom’s economy away from oil, is set to host a quarter-final fixture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Saudi Arabia’s bid is recognized and the country had until October’s deadline to submit its plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of the 11 new stadiums, eight will be in the capital Riyadh – including the 92,760 King Salman International Stadium, which will host the opening game and the final.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The cities of Jeddah, Al Khobar and Abha will also host matches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 2034 World Cup will be the first time the expanded tournament is held in just one country as a 48-team event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The hosts are set to be confirmed by the Fifa congress on 11 December. (BBC)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n An entire new city will essential to be built in Neom’s case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Its flagship project, The Line, has been pitched as a car-free city, just 200m (656ft) wide and 170km (106 miles) long – though only 2.4km of the project is reportedly expected to be completed by 2030., external<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Line will be taller than the Empire State Building and about as long as the distance between Bristol and London.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The bid document claims the new Neom stadium will be “run entirely on renewable energy”, mainly from wind and solar sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are plans to build a new international airport in Neom, which the bid document states will have 12 million domestic and international visitors per annum by 2034.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The airports in all the other host cities are also set to be expanded, with Riyadh expected to have 100m passengers per year by 2034 – an increase of 170% on 2023 – while Abha airport will be upgraded to increase its passenger capacity from 1.5m to 8m in time for the tournament.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Saudi Arabia is also planning to extend train lines and bus routes, with the document stating “navigation around the country will be quick and efficient”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Qatar reportedly spent $220bn (\u00a3172bn) to host the 2022 World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Saudi bid document does not state an overall cost of hosting, but the plans outlined will probably require hundreds of billions of dollars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Riyadh<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Saudi Arabia has defer to plans to build 11 stadiums – including one set 350 metres above ground level – as part of the country’s bid to host the 2034 World Cup. The proposed stadium in Neom, an as-yet-unbuilt city in the north-west of the country, will only be accessible via high-speed lifts and driverless…<\/p>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":6901,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,68],"tags":[794,73,134],"class_list":["post-6900","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-football","category-international-football","tag-2034-world-cup","tag-slsports","tag-sports-news"],"yoast_head":"\n\n
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