A joint South American bid for the 2030 FIFA World Cup will include eight cities in Argentina and two each in Paraguay and Uruguay, it was announced on Tuesday.
Claudio Tapia, president of the Argentinean Football Association, said the exact locations would be revealed at a later stage.
The list of proposed cities is likely to include Buenos Aires, home to the Estadio Monumental, the largest stadium in the country which hosted the 1978 World Cup final.
Asuncion and Montevideo, the capital cities of Paraguay and Uruguay respectively, are also set to feature.
The bid also has the backing of Argentinean star Lionel Messi and his FC Barcelona team mate Luis Suarez of Uruguay.
“Messi will join us in this initiative and Suarez certainly,” Fernando Marin, joint bid coordinator, told AFP. We told him [Messi] about our aims, and he feels it’s doable.”
Argentina and Paraguay confirmed their intention to bid for the 2030 tournament last year.
It was then announced that Uruguay would be part of the effort to secure the hosting rights for FIFA’s flagship competition.
The trio are joining forces to bid for the 2030 World Cup as a celebration of the tournament’s centenary, with the idea being that the event will be brought back home.
The first FIFA World Cup first took place in Uruguay in 1930 with the hosts emerging triumphant.
Officials from the three countries are due to promote their bid during this year’s World Cup in Russia, which begins with the opening match between the hosts and Saudi Arabia in Moscow on June 15.
Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay are currently the only confirmed bidders for 2030 at this stage.
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