FIFA begins inspection tour

OSAKA: Hot on the heels of the World Cup in South Africa, FIFA kicked off a whirlwind two-month tour on Monday to inspect nine candidates vying to host the 2018 and 2022 tournaments.

A five-member team from the sport's world governing body will see the stadiums, facilities and presentations in Osaka and then in Tokyo. The team will then move on to South Korea, Australia, The Netherlands-Belgium (joint bid), Russia, England, Spain-Portugal, United States and Qatar in that order and draw up reports on the feasibility of each bid. FIFA's 24 executives will choose the 2018 and 2022 World Cup hosts on December 2 in Zurich. The team, led by Chilean Football Federation president Harold Mayne-Nicholls, includes FIFA event management chief Juergen Mueller and marketing head David Fowler.

Japan is counting on its organisational, financial and technological clout to win the 2022 event. —AFP