A man from the FA with an oddly-shaped head by the name of Lord Triesman today officially launched England's campaign to host the 2018 or 2022 World Cup.
Alongside Gordon Brown and David Beckham, Triesman insisted our bid represented a golden opportunity for the country and that Brits' inherent "passion" for the beautiful game should help us win out.
“Our starting point is England’s passion for football," he said. "It is our national sport – we have a strong football heritage, which runs through every town and city.
“Every week hundreds of thousand of fans watch games and millions of people across the world and millions in this country – men, women and children – play from pub sides to school teams to the Premier League.
“And all of them, hundreds of million of worldwide, know the FIFA World Cup is the global pinnacle of the game.”
Post-Hillsborough adjustments to the country's top stadia mean that in terms of architecture alone we are in a fantastic position.
Liverpool, Hull, Manchester, Sunderland, Portsmouth, London, Nottingham, Leicester, Derby, Birmingham, Bristol and Leeds have demonstrated an interest in being a part of the bid, as have one town – Milton Keynes.
Recent tournaments have kicked up odd wild-card entries – Montpellier in France '98 were a second division club with a dilapidated stadium, Seogwipo in Korea didn't even have a club in '02 and at the most recent German tourney seventh-division Liepzig were part of their bid – so Milton Keynes' inclusion should probably be seen as a help rather than a hinderance.
In terms of facilities and infrastructure, our main contenders would appear to be European Champions Spain, Russia, the USA and Australia.
Let's just pray that the nitwits at Soho square can persuade the cretins in Geneva that we've got what it takes.
“We believe that England can stage a fantastic festival of football – one that will engage the whole country and deliver positive change for football in England and across the world," said Triesman at Wembley.
“Now we must persuade our international friends and colleagues of our case. It’s easy to say, far less easy to do."
Winning the World Cup in South africa next year might be just the tonic...
Countries bidding for the 2018 are as follows: England, Spain/Portugal (joint), Holland/Belgium (joint), russia, Australia, Japan, Indonesia, Mexico, and The United States.
Countries bidding for the 2018 are as follows: England, Spain/Portugal (joint), Holland/Belgium (joint), russia, Australia, Japan, Indonesia, Mexico, The United States, South Korea and Qatar.
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