Ukraine and Poland are considering a joint bid to host the men’s FIFA World Cup in the 2040s, Ukrainian Sports Minister Matvii Bidnyi said Friday, Sept. 4. An official briefed by the Polish government confirmed that Warsaw was discussing the idea, although neither country has launched a formal bidding process, according to POLITICO.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. “The nearest open date for the World Cup is somewhere in the 2040s… so we need to plan for this perspective right now,” Bidnyi said. Spain, Portugal and Morocco will jointly host the 2030 tournament, while Saudi Arabia will host the World Cup in 2034. Bidnyi cited Ukraine and Poland’s joint hosting of the 2012 UEFA European Championship as a successful precedent. “It would be very logical to repeat this successful case,” he said, adding that the project could help attract international investment to Ukraine. The possibility was also discussed on the sidelines of this year’s Ukraine Recovery Conference in Gdańsk, according to the Polish official cited by POLITICO. Poland’s Sports Ministry did not respond to the publication’s request for comment. Bidnyi stressed that any formal initiative would have to come from the countries’ football federations or broader sporting communities. “We’re interested in it, but … it starts from the initiatives of sports community or sports federation. So we will see,” he said.