Footballs Coming Home?

Today it has been announced which countries will be competing to host the 2018 and 2022 football World Cup’s.

Nine countries are interested in hosting the tournament for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments whilst two countries are interested in just the 2022 finals.

England are amongst the nine countries that are going to bid for both along with, Russia, Australia, the USA, Japan, Mexico, Indonesia and joint bids from Portugal-Spain and Netherlands-Belgium. Whilst Qatar and South Korea have applied to host the 2022 tournament only.

Surely FIFA must now come to their senses, and allow England to finally host the World Cup again. By the time 2018 or 2022 comes around it could be 52 or 54 years since we last held the tournament on these shores, which is far to long.

Since the Wold cup was last played in England, three of the countries bidding this time around have held the tournament, including the USA, Spain, Mexico and Japan held the tournament with South Korea in 2002.

England is the home of football, and if they wanted us to hold the World Cup next month, we will be able to do that with no problems, unlike some other countries, such as South Africa (holding the tournament next year).

Unlike South Africa where they have had to build new stadia from scratch, we already have the infrastructure in place ready to go.

FIFA state that Successful hosts must meet certain conditions if they are to win the right to stage the World Cup and provide at least 12 stadiums with minimum capacities of 40,000. The final must be held in a stadium with a capacity of at least 80,000.

England tick both of those boxes and are on stand by for the World Cup next year if South Africa haven't finished building all of their stadiums.

It's been an extremely long time since last held the World Cup, whilst other countries such as USA and Japan have had the opportunity, but football is way down the pecking order in those countries in terms of sport.

We have held the European Championships in England since 1966, and they past with flying colors.

Both FIFA and UEFA seem to dislike the fact that English teams do well in the Champions League and tend to hold it against us, but surely the time has come where football and come home, and maybe who knows a repeat f what happened in 1966?