Could Monaco ever host the World Cup?

Monaco is one of the most glamorous locations on Earth and it has hosted a number of high-profile sporting events. Some take place annually, such as the Monaco Grand Prix, while others are less regular, such as poker championship tournaments or chess tournaments. Monaco has shown that it has the ability to host some of the grandest events in the world. It is a small nation of under 40,000 people and has a land border with France. However, it is a sovereign territory with its own governance.

Monaco is also one of the gambling capitals of the world. It attracts high rollers from every corner of the globe and has also been featured in iconic films. While it doesn’t see the same levels of profit from tourism as the likes of Macau or Las Vegas, per capita, it holds its weight anywhere in the world. The sorts of games you can find in a casino in Monaco are those you can find while playing online too. Online casino games include roulette, poker and baccarat.

Monaco welcomes some of the world’s richest individuals to their shores for a luxurious holiday – because it is a fantastic venue. A dazzling evening at one of the top-of-the-range resorts is something Monaco is renowned for. However, Monaco hosting the World Cup is a bit of a stretch. There isn’t a scenario where this is a possibility, at least not for the next 10 or 15 years, minimum.

Monaco, mostly because of its limited size, only has one football stadium, which has a relatively small capacity. For example, the latest Euro final was held at Wembley, which has a capacity of 80,000. The football stadium in Monaco has a maximum capacity of around 20,000. Due to the nature of the tournament, there are dozens of games that take place over several weeks. There need to be multiple venues available so that a solitary pitch doesn’t get damaged, and a range of stadiums for players to participate properly.

What is a more likely scenario is that Monaco co-hosts the competition with one of its neighbors, and France is the obvious option. Not only is France one of the finest powerhouses on the international circuit, but they have also hosted the tournament twice. They understand the logistics involved to ensure that the competition runs smoothly.

If Monaco threw its name in the hat to host some of the games, FIFA might look at their bid more favorably if they launched a joint bid with either France or Italy, located nearby.

The 2026 World Cup is being co-hosted across the North American continent by the United States, Canada and Mexico. This approach could increase Monaco's chances of hosting the competition in some capacity. The exposure Monaco would receive hosting a world event like this would be great publicity, with advertisers, sports writers and journalists from all over the world flocking into the country. However, it is extremely unlikely we will see the nation ever can carry the full weight of the World Cup.

We do not mean this in any way to talk down about Monaco. It is a beautiful country and hosts some of the finest events on the sporting calendar, such as Formula One.

During the Formula One race, the country grinds to a halt as most roads are closed to accommodate the event. This would be amplified for the World Cup, as many more people watch it. The World Cup final is often one of the most watched sporting matches anywhere on Earth.

There would be huge numbers flocking into the small sovereign territory. The logistics of having that many people living and staying in Monaco over several weeks simply wouldn’t be feasible.

Monaco's stadium was not utilized when France last hosted the tournament in 1998. If France looks to table another bid, there may be some flexibility in using Monaco’s facilities and becoming a base for fans who want to watch the tournament. This could be used as a trial run to see how Monaco may handle the potential of hosting more games in the future.

However, until they have at least a few more stadiums, there just isn’t a way they would be able to handle the congested week of fixtures that the World Cup demands – in particular, the earlier group stages, when there are three games per day. The turf would not be able to recover, any travel to and from the stadium would be severely restricted for fans, and there just wouldn’t be anywhere near enough room to accommodate all the players and the fans who would want to come over and watch the World Cup unfold.