FIFA's report on the U.S.-led bid names Atlanta the hub, with the draw at the Fox Theatre or the Woodruff Arts Center. FIFA votes on the host Nov. 23.

Atlanta would be the central hub of the 2031 FIFA Women’s World Cup if the joint bid from the United States, Mexico, Costa Rica and Jamaica wins. The tournament draw would be held in Midtown, at the Fox Theatre or the Woodruff Arts Center.

FIFA published its evaluation report on the bid Wednesday. It gave the bid an overall score of 4.4 out of 5 and said it meets the minimum hosting requirements.

It is the only bid for 2031. FIFA’s member associations will vote on the host at an Extraordinary FIFA Congress held by videoconference Monday, Nov. 23, FIFA said in its announcement.

What the bid proposes for Atlanta

The report says the bidders picked Atlanta as the principal location for the tournament’s events off the field. They cited the airport’s direct flights to every host country and the hotels, restaurants and entertainment in downtown and Midtown.

The Atlanta plans in the report:

  • The draw: the Fox Theatre, listed at 4,600 seats, or the Woodruff Arts Center as the alternative, listed at 4,890
  • The team workshop: the Georgia Ballroom at the Georgia World Congress Center, or the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre in Cobb County as the alternative
  • Matches: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, proposed for every category of match
  • Fan festival: two possible sites in each of the 20 candidate host cities, Atlanta included

FIFA expects a draw audience of 1,000 to 2,000, so both Midtown venues are bigger than needed. The report said that gives room to lay out the hall, but more detail is needed on offices, broadcast space and the draw dinner.

The Georgia World Congress Center connects directly to the Signia by Hilton Atlanta, a 1,000-room hotel. The report counted that as an advantage. It noted the Cobb County venue is farther from downtown and the airport.

How Mercedes-Benz Stadium scored

FIFA scored the stadium 4.5 out of 5. No stadium in the bid scored higher. AT&T Stadium near Dallas, SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles and MetLife Stadium in New Jersey also scored 4.5.

The report noted that the stadium:

  • holds about 71,000, above the minimum for an opening match or final
  • hosted six matches at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup and eight at the 2026 World Cup, including a semifinal
  • would need its artificial turf replaced with grass, as was done for the 2026 World Cup
  • has a retractable roof, which FIFA called “generally regarded as highly valuable”

The bid did not name a stadium for the opening match or the final. FIFA used MetLife Stadium for both in its scoring and said that does not decide where they would be played.

Atlanta scored 4.4 out of 5 for its fan festival sites and 5 out of 5 for hotels.

A bigger tournament

The 2031 tournament would be the first Women’s World Cup with 48 teams, up from 32. The number of matches would rise from 64 to 104, and the event would run a week longer.

The bid proposes playing from mid-June to late July 2031, in 20 candidate host cities across the four countries. The 14 U.S. cities include Atlanta, Charlotte, Nashville and Orlando.

The bid also lists more than 30 possible host cities and more than 45 stadiums for later consideration. The final venues would be chosen only if the bid wins.

What it means for you

  • Nothing is decided yet. The FIFA Congress votes Monday, Nov. 23.
  • Matches in Atlanta are proposed, not confirmed. Host cities and stadiums are chosen after the vote, from the longer list.
  • The draw and the team workshop are the Atlanta events in the plan. FIFA’s report rated the proposed Atlanta sites well placed to meet the requirements.
  • The tournament would run mid-June to late July 2031, if the bid wins.