The 2030 World Cup will celebrate one hundred years of the tournament, and FIFA has chosen a unique way to mark the occasion: three opening matches will be played in South America, in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay, before the tournament moves to its main hosts in Spain, Portugal and Morocco. It is a tribute to the first World Cup, played in Uruguay in 1930, and a recognition that the tournament's history belongs to South America as much as to Europe. Here is the full story of the centenary matches and why they matter.

Uruguay 1930: where it all began

The first World Cup was played in Uruguay in 1930, with thirteen teams and a final at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo, where the hosts beat Argentina to become the first world champions. That tournament was a leap of faith: teams travelled by ship, the world was in economic crisis, and nobody knew if the idea would work. It did, and the World Cup became the biggest sporting event on the planet.

Playing a centenary match in Montevideo is a direct link to that history. The Estadio Centenario still stands, and hosting a match there in 2030 will be one of the most emotional moments of the tournament. For Uruguay, a small country with a huge football history, it is a recognition of everything the nation gave to the game.

Argentina and Paraguay: the other hosts

Argentina was the beaten finalist in 1930 and has been central to World Cup history ever since, winning the tournament three times and producing some of the greatest players the game has ever seen. Playing a centenary match in Buenos Aires honours that history and gives Argentine fans a home game in a tournament their team will otherwise play mostly in Europe and Africa.

Paraguay's role is a tribute to the country's place in South American football and to the fact that the first World Cup was a continental effort, not just a Uruguayan one. The match in Asunción will be a celebration for Paraguayan fans and a reminder that the World Cup's centenary belongs to the whole continent, not just to one nation.

How the centenary matches will work

The three South American matches will be the opening games of the tournament, played before the action moves to Spain, Portugal and Morocco. Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay will each play their first group match at home, which means their groups will be structured around that opening fixture. After those matches, the three teams will travel to Europe and Africa for the rest of their group games.

Logistically, it is a challenge: teams, officials and fans will need to cross the Atlantic in the middle of the tournament's opening week. FIFA has planned the schedule to allow enough travel time, and the centenary matches are scheduled early enough that the rest of the tournament can proceed normally. It is an unusual format, but it is a one-off celebration, and FIFA believes the history is worth the complexity.

What the centenary means for football

The centenary is more than a marketing idea: it is a reminder that the World Cup has survived wars, boycotts, expansion and controversy to become the world's biggest sporting event. One hundred years after thirteen teams gathered in Montevideo, forty-eight teams will play in a tournament spanning two continents and six countries, and that growth is the story of football itself.

For fans, the centenary matches are a chance to be part of history. The games in Montevideo, Buenos Aires and Asunción will be among the most sought-after tickets of the tournament, and the atmosphere will be extraordinary. The 2030 World Cup is a tournament about the future, but it begins by honouring the past.

The 2030 World Cup's centenary matches take the tournament back to where it began: Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay will each host an opening game before the action moves to Spain, Portugal and Morocco. One hundred years after Montevideo 1930, the World Cup comes home — briefly, and beautifully.