FIFA president Sepp Blatter's recent comments about China hosting the 2018 FIFA World Cup aside, U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati has another candidate to host the event -- the United States.
"I think we'll be a terrific host again," he said as part of a reporters roundtable during the Women's World Cup which concluded Sunday evening.
If FIFA follows its confederation rotation, it will be CONCACAF's turn in 2018. However, the world soccer's governing body could change things when it meets next month.
"It is our intention to bid on the World Cup and I think the things we have shown FIFA and the world of soccer we can do in three World Cups we have hosted are almost beyond belief," Gulati said, referring to the 1994 World Cup and the 1999 and 2003 Women's World Cups. "I think we will be an attractive host."
Gulati felt that FIFA's work in the U.S. was far from done.
"FIFA set out with a mission in American soccer to give us the World Cup in 1994, which was a risk," he said. "The 1999 Women's World Cup wasn't a risk, but it was a great opportunity and one that exploded. I don't think FIFA's work on the United States is done. We are not getting 60 shares for TV games of the national team, we are not on the front page of every major newspaper all the time, we are not having Landon Donovan in the consciousness of the American public in the same way that Barry Bonds is. So all of that is work to be done, but it's getting better."
At a pregame press conference prior to the U.S.-Brazil semifinal in Hangzhou on Thursday, Blatter gave his thumbs up to China hosting a future World Cup, perhaps as early as 2018.
"It's in FIFA's interests to have multiple bidders on any event," Gulati said. "The president is very diplomatic. The number of countries that are potentially bidding for the World Cup is related to the number of countries he visits. We are in China right now, so that's OK.
"Having said that, we will await a decision in the next 45 days from FIFA about the rotation system. It seems to me that if they had set up a rotation system you should at least go through the rotation all the way once. And if that's the case, the next World Cup in 2018 would be in CONCACAF. They are talking about not continuing the rotation system, in which case my guess is it would be open to a worldwide competition."
The next World Cup is set for South Africa in 2010. Since South America is next in the rotation, Brazil was the lone bidder for 2014. Brazil hosted the event in 1950.
"I think the World Cup will be in Brazil," Gulati said. "From what I understand, their bid is very impressive."
Michael Lewis covers soccer for the New York Daily News and is editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He can be reached at SoccerWriter516@aol.com. Views and opinions expressed in this column are the author's, and not necessarily those of Major League Soccer or MLSnet.com.
