Sports

USA Withdraws From World Cup 2010 To Fouces On World Cup 2022

by NowPublic Staff | October 15, 2010 at 09:39 am

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United States World Cup Soccer Committee Drops World Cup 2010 Bid - Focus Now On World Cup 2022 Bid

The United States has decided to withdraw its bid from the FIFA World Cup 2018, deciding to focus instead on 2022.

Sunil Gulati On USA World Cup Bid

FIFA will choose the hosts for both World Cups on Dec. 2 in Zurich. England is the front-runner for 2018, with Russia posing the greatest challenge. Spain/Portugal and Netherlands/Belgium are also bidding. With a European nation assured of hosting that tournament, the United States is the favorite for 2022 in its competition with Qatar, Australia, Japan and South Korea.

The United States has much better chance landing the FIFA World Cup in 2022. The 2018 World Cup is widely expected to be in a European city.

“For some time we have been in conversations with FIFA and UEFA about the possibility of focusing only on the 2022 bidding process, an option we have made reference to many times,” said Sunil Gulati, Chairman of the USA Bid Committee and President of U.S. Soccer. “We are confident this is in the best interests of the USA Bid.”

“We have had an open and constructive dialogue with the USA Bid for some time now, after it became apparent that there was a growing movement to stage the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Europe,” said FIFA Secretary General Jérôme Valcke. “The announcement today by the USA Bid to focus solely on the 2022 FIFA World Cup is therefore a welcome gesture which is much appreciated by FIFA.”