The WFFA opens the selection process for the 2024 World Championship host destination

The World Freestyle Football Association has announced today the opening of the selection process to elect the city that will host the 2024 edition of the World Freestyle Football Championship Finals. Over the last 13 years, this exciting and energy-packed event has travelled to fascinating countries such as Brazil, Croatia, Japan, Italy, Spain, South Africa, England and the USA.

For the 2024 edition, all applicants will be required to follow a process that will allow the WFFA experts to evaluate their proposal, including not just the physical facilities they can offer to the participant athletes but also the values and adequacy of the candidacy.

The selection procedure will include four stages, during which the candidates will be asked to provide key information about their proposal. The process will happen as follows:

1. Expression of interest: deadline May 12th, 2023
   1. Candidates will be required to email partnerships@thewffa.org with an introduction to their organisation and destination
   2. The WFFA will forward the candidate the Request For Proposal (RFP) presentation, which outlines all requirements needed to submit an application
   3. Candidates will be asked to prepare a presentation to excite and cater to the needs of the sport, the event and its participants

1. Confirmation of shortlisted options: announced on May 22nd, 2023
   1. The WFFA will contact the applicants individually and confidentially; the best 5 candidates will be selected
   2. The WFFA Partnerships team will then set up a video call with the 5 selected destinations to learn more about their proposal and organise a site visit

1. Site visits to all shortlisted options: happening before August 31st, 2023
   1. The WFFA Operations team will visit all shortlisted destinations to understand the logistics and the logic of each option

1. Host destination selected: communicated privately on September 18th, 2023
   1. The WFFA Partnerships team will notify the winning candidate privately
   2. The WFFA and the winning candidate will align on all the required documentation and sign the necessary contracts to confirm the agreement
   3. The representatives of the winning destination will be invited to the 2023 World Finals, happening on November 25th in Kenya, where the public announcement will be made

Once the process has been completed and the announcement has been made, the best male and female athletes in the sport of Freestyle Football will compete in the Pulse Series around the world from June to September 2024 for the chance to qualify for the World Championship Finals and be crowned the best in the world in the winning city.

For more details about the 2024 World Freestyle Football Championship Finals tender process, please visit the dedicated page on the WFFA website at www.thewffa.org/2024tender. 

Dan Wood, Head of Partnerships at the WFFA, explained: “Since its launch in 2008, the Freestyle Football World Championship has travelled to all corners of the globe and entertained hundreds of millions of fans. We want to encourage any destination worldwide to get creative and be a part of our future. The uniqueness of the venue options and the energy and support from the destination are what particularly interests and excites us.”

Stay tuned to the official channels of the WFFA to follow the latest updates!