Football Australia (FA) boss James Johnson had said the country was "exploring the possibility" of 2034, but on Tuesday the governing body said it would instead focus on bids for the 2026 Women's Asian Cup and the 2029 Club World Cup. The president of the Asian Football Confederation, the sport's continental governing body to which Australia belongs, said "the entire Asian football family" would stand united in support of the Saudi bid. Australia hosted a successful Women's World Cup this year but has never hosted a men's World Cup. "We believe we are in a strong position to host the oldest women’s international competition in the world - the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026 - and then welcome the greatest teams in world football for the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup," FA said. FIFA awarded the 2030 World Cup to Morocco, Portugal and Spain, also adding World Cup centenary games in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay.

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Persons: James Johnson, Bernadett Szabo, Ian Ransom, Neil Fullick, John Stonestreet Organizations: Soccer Football, FIFA World, Qatar, Australia Press, Football Australia, Rights, Australia, FIFA, Asian Football Confederation, Saudi, AFC, Thomson Locations: Doha, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Asia, Oceania, Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay, Melbourne