The Belgian Football Association (RBFA), the Dutch Football Association (KNVB) and the German Football Association (DFB) have submitted the bid documents - the so-called Bid Book - for the FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 to FIFA on time. It covers all relevant aspects of the bid and provides a detailed overview of all areas required for the tournament.
The bid book comprises around 300 pages and 17 chapters, plus a further 300 pages of contract documents. This is a comprehensive bid that not only fulfills the essential requirements for the competition itself, but above all demonstrates the positive impact on the future development of women's soccer worldwide.
After months of detailed planning and hard work by a transnational project team, BNG2027 - BNG stands for the English initials of the three countries Belgium, Netherlands, Germany and the slogan Breaking New Ground - has presented a bid book with a clear objective: The three bidders want to organize a fan-oriented, commercially attractive and sustainable tournament that offers the participating teams and fans the best possible quality in every respect. They are convinced that this will increase both interest in women's soccer and the number of active players worldwide. In June and July 2027, women's soccer will be at the center of world attention like never before.
RBFA President Pascale Van Damme, KNVB President Just Spee and DFB President Bernd Neuendorf said: "Women's soccer is developing at a rapid pace. The number of girls who are interested in soccer is enormous, and we are seeing a steadily growing interest among fans. Our aim with BNG2027 is to deliver a bid that captures this momentum and at the same time generates even more enthusiasm and engagement. We believe our bid has all the elements to do just that. We want to support FIFA in its mission to create an exciting future for women's soccer. Our motto BNG also stands for the ambitious goal we have set ourselves: With Breaking New Ground, we want to go the extra mile to host a World Cup tournament at the highest level, take soccer to the next level and realize its great potential."
The central contents of the Bidbook
Sustainable and compact
Possible venues include: Anderlecht (Brussels), Charleroi, Genk, Ghent, Amsterdam, Eindhoven, Heerenveen, Enschede, Rotterdam, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Gelsenkirchen and Cologne - all cities with a deep-rooted soccer tradition that want to open their stadiums to fans from all over the world. The 13 stadiums and cities have experience in hosting international matches and/or major events and want to contribute to the success of the FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 with enthusiasm and commitment. The final selection of the ten venues will be made by FIFA.
The pre-selection of candidate cities was made after careful and deliberate consideration. As the most sustainable World Cup of all time is to be hosted, the stadiums are located as close to each other as possible. The maximum distance between the venues will be limited to 300 kilometers so that teams and fans have to travel as little as possible. Modern public transport will ensure that fans can move between the cities easily and in an environmentally friendly way.
If BNG is awarded the contract, FIFA can choose one of the two historic Brussels venues (Brussels Expo and Tour & Taxis) as the venue for the draw.
Unique fan moments
Thanks to the proximity of the venues to each other, it will be easy and affordable for fans to watch many matches live in the stadium and soak up the unique atmosphere of a FIFA World Cup. In addition, the focus will be on the FIFA Fan Festivals, which will be held in all three countries at central, traditionally popular locations in the respective host cities and invite fans to public viewing, among other things. From there, they can then walk to the stadium together as part of the innovative "United World Cup Walks" - another way of creating what a World Cup is all about: Fun, anticipation, excitement and a very special sense of community. The idea of safety also plays a major role here.
Commercial success
BNG2027 is set to be the most commercially successful FIFA Women's World Cup ever. The aim is to increase revenue by 50 percent compared to the 2023 World Cup. This can be achieved through revenue from global media rights, cost savings thanks to the compact nature of the tournament and by maximizing revenue from the European sponsorship market. In addition, the forecasts for income from ticketing and hospitality are very positive. The revenue generated will be used to promote the development of women's soccer in FIFA member associations worldwide.
Global growth of women's soccer
BNG is not only striving to host the most successful FIFA Women's World Cup ever. It also aims to be a catalyst for the further development of women's soccer worldwide and has a clear plan to achieve three specific goals in the coming years: further emancipation, more active participation and value-driven commercialization - in the three countries and beyond.
Several programs are being launched for this purpose, including
- NextGen: (Young) staff from national associations around the world will have the opportunity to experience the tournament first-hand and gain experience that will help them in their own efforts to promote women's soccer in their countries;
- BNG Unite Program: At 27 events for national associations worldwide, they can share knowledge, exchange experiences and find out about best practice examples in women's soccer.
- KickstartHer: A global program that aims to inspire the next generation to play women's soccer and promote a healthy lifestyle.
Manu Leroy (CEO a.i. RBFA), Gijs de Jong (KNVB General Secretary), and Heike Ullrich (DFB General Secretary) explain: "The bid book represents our desire to welcome the world to the biggest soccer festival in the history of women's soccer in the summer of 2027. We hope that FIFA shares our enthusiasm and recognizes the merits and quality of our bid. We invite national soccer federations from around the world to put their trust in us and join us in making the dream of a World Cup that truly globalizes women's soccer come true."
