US bid leader cautious after FIFA complete inspection visit

By Andrew Warshaw

September 9 - FIFA’s technical inspection team wound up its tour of the United States today with Bid President Sunil Gulati hinting strongly that there was more work to do to clinch the tournament in either 2018 or 2022.

Gulati is due to brief reporters tomorrow but was in cautious mood as the FIFA inspectors flew out of the country ahead of their trip to Qatar, the final visit among the nine candidates.

The six-man inspection team concluded their five-city US tour with stops in Dallas and Houston and a series of meetings with national and local civic and business officials, visits to stadiums and tourism attractions, plus introductions to soccer players, coaches and fans.

“The tour was a terrific experience and opportunity for us to exchange thoughts with the FIFA delegation and highlight various aspects of our bid,” said Gulati.

“The enthusiasm our cities and the country would have for a possible World Cup in the United States was clearly evident.

“I think we made very clear that if the U.S. is selected to host the World Cup in 2018 or 2022, we will be a welcoming host.”

But in a brief session with reporters later ahead of a more lengthy media briefing , he added pointedly: “In the end, it’s not only about having the infrastructure and having top-level stadiums and so on.

“It’s about convincing 24 people that it’s in the best long-term interests of the sport to come to the United States.”

Gulati did not see a negative, however, in the fact that the US is lobbying for its second World Cup in three decades, while Australia and Qatar are vying for their first.

“I don’t think hosting a successful event and setting multiple records should be a disadvantage,” he said.

“It will have been 28 years, if it’s 2022.

“Clearly, that’s an issue for some, going out to new and uncharted water, but we think there’s some advantages.

“FIFA knows we can do this, we’ve done it well, and we can do it again.”

Gulati was asked to compare the World Cup bid with Chicago’s failed attempt to land the 2016 Olympics.

“I’m not sure we learned very many specific lessons from the Chicago experience,” he said.

“We’ve tried to do everything possible to make sure that we present a case for the US that’s irresistible.”

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