The "dominant feature" of Morocco’s bid to stage the 2026 World Cup "appears to be that no one talks about it," according to Tariq Panja of the N.Y. TIMES. In contrast to the joint candidacy of the U.S., Mexico and Canada -- a bid announced last August "atop the Freedom Tower in New York with firm handshakes and signed contracts" -- Morocco revealed its entry into the race in a "two-sentence statement that, in hindsight, seems verbose." Five months later, Moroccan football officials "have provided scant detail about how they propose to stage the world’s biggest sporting event." With five months to go before FIFA selects the 2026 WC host, Morocco "only last week" named a chair of its bid committee. The bid currently has "no logo to paste on billboards, no slogan to trumpet in news releases, no flashy stadium plan to share with potential voters." It does not "even have a website." Last week, numerous local football officials "recoiled when asked to comment on the plans and declined to discuss the bid on the record." Moroccan football officials "are privately playing down doubts about their bid." They insist they have "the resources to host the event." So far, though, "little about the plans has been revealed publicly" (N.Y. TIMES, 1/16).
