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China still mulling bid for World Cup finals

(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-10-24 18:02

China has not decided whether to build on the huge success of the Beijing Olympics by launching a bid for the 2018 or 2022 World Cup finals, the China Football Association (CFA) said on Friday.

FIFA is expected to announce the bid procedure for both tournaments later on Friday with a joint bid from Belgium and the Netherlands already formally declared. England, the United States, Mexico, Spain and Australia are also likely to bid.

"We have no announcement to make about whether we will bid or not at present," CFA spokesman Dong Hua said on Friday.

"Hosting the World Cup finals would be a very good thing for China. It's a long time aspiration of Chinese fans and the Chinese football community but it needs a lot of thought about all aspects before we make a decision."

A China bid is likely to have a good chance of succeeding given the desire of many in the international soccer community to tap the Chinese market, as well as the legacy from August's Olympics and the 2007 women's World Cup.

Beijing, which is likely to form the centre of a bid, has two major stadiums. The new 80,000 capacity Bird's Nest served as the centrepiece for the Olympics while the refurbished 64,000-seater Workers Stadium is the traditional home of Chinese soccer.

Tianjin (capacity 54,000), Shenyang (60,000) and Qinhuangdao (31,000) all built arenas to host soccer matches at the Games, while Shanghai Stadium (56,000) was also re-fitted for the FIFA organised tournament.

Shanghai's other main arena, the Hongkou Football Stadium (33,000), was the venue of the women's World Cup final last year, while stadiums in Chengdu (42,000), Hangzhou (51,000) and Wuhan (60,000) also hosted matches.