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Andy Burnham has said he wants to bring the men’s World Cup to the UK in 2042, returning the tournament to Britain for the first time in almost eight decades.
At a meeting in No 10 North in Manchester on Friday, the prime minister told regional mayors he was keen for the tournament to be played in the British Isles.
When the 1966 World Cup took place in England, with the home side beating West Germany 4-2 in the final after extra time, it was the only time the country has either hosted or won the contest.
Burnham, a keen football fan who has a season ticket at Everton, said earlier this month that it was “insane” only one World Cup had been held anywhere in the UK.
It is understood a formal application to stage the competition could also involve other home nations, none of which have ever hosted any World Cup games.
In recent years, joint bids between countries for major football tournaments have become more common. Alongside the Republic of Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will host the men’s European championships in 2028.
A Downing Street source said: “We support the FA’s priorities in terms of the tournaments they are already hosting, and any others they’d like to bid for.
“It would always be great to host more tournaments. These are broad aspirations – it’s a general ambition. The prime minister is a sports fan and loves his football.”
England made a doomed bid to host the 2018 World Cup, which was awarded to Russia amid allegations of corruption.
In 2014, while serving in the shadow cabinet, Burnham said he was uncomfortable that the tournament was still allowed to take place in Russia after its annexation of Crimea.
Under Fifa regulations, no European country would be eligible to stage the World Cup until 2042.
In 2000, Fifa introduced rules that meant the tournament would be rotated around its six continental confederations. It led to South Africa hosting its first World Cup in 2010, but the strict system was scrapped in October 2007.
Nations are not allowed to bid to stage a World Cup if either of the previous two tournaments have taken place on the same continent.
The 2030 World Cup will be hosted by Spain, Portugal and Morocco, with some early matches taking place in South America to mark the tournament’s centenary. The first World Cup was played in Uruguay in 1930.
Fifa has also confirmed that the 2034 tournament will take place in Saudi Arabia. The location of the 2038 World Cup has not yet been announced, but under the rules, games are likely to be played in North America or Oceania, which includes Australia and New Zealand.
At Friday’s meeting, Burnham is also understood to have spoken about the possibility of hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games in the north of England in the 2040s.
Earlier this year, under the previous prime minister, Keir Starmer, UK Sport was commissioned to assess whether a bid would be viable.
It is understood that the government is considering the possibility of a “multi-city bid” in an attempt to spread any economic benefit between several northern cities.
