FIFA World Cup hosts

Sixteen countries have been FIFA World Cup hosts in the competition's twenty tournaments since the inaugural World Cup in 1930. The organization was at first awarded to countries at meetings of FIFA's congress. The choice of location was controversial in the earliest tournaments, given the three-week boat journey between South America and Europe, the two centres of strength in football at the time.

The decision to hold the first cup in Uruguay, for example, led to only four European nations competing. The next two World Cups were both held in Europe. The decision to hold the second of these, the 1938 FIFA World Cup, in France was controversial, as the South American countries had been led to understand that the World Cup would rotate between the two continents.

Both Argentina and Uruguay thus boycotted the tournament. The first tournament following World War II, held in Brazil in 1950, had three teams withdrawing due to either financial problems or disagreements with the organization.

To avoid any future boycotts or controversy, FIFA began a pattern of alternation between the Americas and Europe, which continued until the 2002 FIFA World Cup which took place in Asia. The system evolved so that the host country is now chosen in a vote by FIFA's Council (former Executive Committee). This is done under an exhaustive ballot system. The decision is currently made roughly seven years in advance of the tournament, though the hosts for the 2022 tournament were chosen at the same time as those for the 2018 tournament.

Only Mexico, Italy, France, Germany (West Germany until shortly after the 1990 World Cup) and Brazil have hosted the event on two occasions. Mexico City's Estadio Azteca and Rio de Janeiro's Maracanã are the only venues ever to have hosted two FIFA World Cup finals. Only the 2002 FIFA World Cup had more than one host, being split between Japan and South Korea.

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