The FA considers a five-country bid for 2030 World Cup

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The English Football Association (FA) is considering involving Ireland in the joint bid for the 2030 FIFA World Cup, making it a five-nation campaign, reported The Daily Mail on Monday.

Though Ireland has not made any formal contact with the FA yet, The Daily Mail said that the option will be popular across the Irish Channel. "All options are being considered," said an FA spokesman.

Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay will bid to host the 2030 FIFA World Cup. /VCG Photo

The proposal will also help solve the problem of Northern Ireland having no suitable stadium for World Cup matches because Dublin, the capital of Ireland, has two stadiums - the Aviva Stadium and Croke Park -that meet the standard.

Last week, UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin expressed his support for increasing Irish participation in World Cup hosting by saying that it's time "for that part of Europe to get the World Cup" and "if more countries bid, there is more chance to win".

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin supports the idea of involving Ireland in bidding for the 2030 FIFA World Cup. /VCG Photo

Surely there will be obstacles before the option comes into implementation. For example, Europe will have 16 teams playing at the World Cup from 2026 onward, as this is when the total attendants will rise to 48. Since host nations will enter the World Cup automatically, there's no way for FIFA to allow five European teams join the other 16 in competing with the rest of the world.

Moreover, the British Isles are not the only bidding team for 2030. Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay from South America and the African combination of Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco are also chasing the job.

The voting to decide who will host the world's top soccer event in 2030 will take place in 2022.

(Top picture: VCG Photo)