FIFA president Gianni Infantino has confirmed that Saudi Arabia will host the 2034 World Cup.

Football's world governing body had previously stated that the 2034 edition of the tournament would take place in Asia or Oceania.

Australia were expected to be the only country to rival Saudi Arabia, which confirmed its intention to bid in early October.

However, Australia confirmed that they have decided against submitting a rival bid just hours before Tuesday's deadline for declarations of interest.

Instead of bidding for the World Cup, Football Australia are now set to turn their attention to gaining the rights to host the Women's Asian Cup in 2026 and the Club World Cup in 2029.

Following Australia's decision, Infantino took to social media to announce that the 2034 World Cup will be heading to Saudi Arabia.

In an Instagram post, Infantino said: "The bidding processes were approved by consensus via the FIFA Council - where all six confederations are represented - after constructive dialogue and extensive consultation. Thank you to everyone who has participated in this positive exchange.

"Football unites the world like no other sport, and the FIFA World Cup is the perfect showcase for a message of unity and inclusion, as well as providing an important illustration of how different cultures can be together and can learn and better understand one another.

"As we live in an increasingly divided and aggressive world, we show once again that football, the leading global sport, unites like nothing else.

"We all need these occasions of unity and the upcoming FIFA World Cups provide a unique force for good in this respect."

A FIFA Congress will take place late this year to confirm the hosts for 2034 and the 2030 edition, which is set to be shared between six countries.

FIFA have already revealed that Spain, Portugal and Morocco will be co-hosts for the 2030 tournament, with the opening three matches set to take place in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.

The next World Cup in 2026 will be the second tournament to be held across multiple nations following the 2002 edition in Japan and South Korea.

USA, Canada and Mexico will be the hosts in three years' time, with the tournament set to be expanded to 48 teams. body check tags ::