Credit: Twitter
FIFA has announced that Argentina will host the 2023 U-20 World Cup replacing Indonesia as the initial host. The Bureau of the FIFA Council confirmed the decision after the Argentinian Football Association (AFA) submitted a subsequent bid and a FIFA delegation inspected the South American country last week. Peru and Qatar had confirmed their interest in hosting the tournament but only Argentina submitted an official bid.
Indonesia was stripped as host "due to the current circumstances," according to the statement by FIFA. The decision came after the country’s anti-Israel stand and calls from protestors to ban the country from playing in the World Cup. The governing body was concerned whether the tournament will go on without disruption. The South Asian country will lose billions of dollars and its team loses its spot at the World Cup and it may face potential sanctions at a later stage.
FIFA president Mr. Infantino had stated that all departments involved had provided the “necessary assurances” behind a “strong” bid, which was handed to him by CONMEBOL President Alejandro Domínguez. Argentina did not qualify for this tournament initially but now have default qualification as the hosts.
The official draw of the FIFA U20 World Cup will take place on April 21 at FIFA's headquarter in Zurich and the tournament will take place from May 20 to June 21. The country has also bid for the 2030 World Cup along with Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay which will take place 100 years after the first edition of the tournament in Uruguay.
