2018 and 2022 World Cup Bid Predictions

December 1, 2010 By 14 Comments

The fates of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup locations will be decided tomorrow. While it seems a little idiotic that they are determining the World Cup location twelve years from now (seriously, what’s next, Antarctica will be announced next month to host the 2032 Winter Olympics?) there is a small amount of excitement here about the U.S. hosting another World Cup.

We have former presidents and major stars involved in our bid process and it is getting at least some attention. The last World Cup held in the U.S. was in 1994 – I was just a poor kid back then without cable TV so my experience was limited and mostly forgotten, save for a World Cup issue of Sports Illustrated for Kids which I read front to back about 20 times and the few matches they had on ABC that my mom didn’t prevent me from watching.

But I digress. On to the bids…

2018 World Cup

  • Belgium / Netherlands – Odds: ~50/1 – As fantastic as it would be to have these two countries host the World Cup, it’s about as unlikely as Greece winning Euro 2004… but that happened so you never know.
  • England – Odds: 9/2 (4.5) – What the hell happened here? All of the drama surrounding the bid and people selling their votes has really hurt the English, who were considered the early front-runners but have fallen all the way back to third. I think London having the upcoming Olympics as well certainly didn’t help their bid.
  • Spain / Portugal – Odds: 15/4 (3.75) – Not bad, but honestly not my first choice. First off, it would be one toasty World Cup with the summer heat in both of these places. Second, even though the facilities are in place, I’m not sure if the countries will be up to holding the tournament given their recent financial troubles. Let’s have it in a nation where they won’t have to cut financial assistance to the poor to reform stadiums. That sounds like a good idea.
  • Russia – Odds: 9/5 (1.8) – The bid that honestly makes the most sense given what FIFA wants to do, which is get the World Cup to all corners of the world. But is Russia really ready to host the World Cup? Between infrastructure issues, the racism, and the insane fans… let’s just say that I won’t be expecting the same level of “hospitality” as Germany, South Africa, or even Brazil. If you don’t believe me, check out the video below, English bias aside…


2022 World Cup

  • South Korea – Odds: 19/1 - E for effort, but they just co-hosted it 8 years ago. Two  World Cups in 20 years? Share the love…
  • Japan – Odds: 11/1 – Same as South Korea… very unlikely
  • Qatar – Odds: 11/4 (2.75) – The shock bid, the unpredictable. The tiny, tiny country was once a joke but now has a legit chance of winning. Not only is their bid is backed by Zinedine Zidane as well as prominent Middle East political figures and fully supported by a boatload of oil money, but a World Cup has never been held in the Middle East. Ever. But I think it’s just bad timing given the state of the Middle East, not to mention the brutal summer heat. The 4/1 guy to girl ratio in Qatar makes me immediately not want to go.
  • Australia – Odds: 5/2 (2.5) – I won’t lie; Australia is an extremely attractive option. As another country who has yet to host the World Cup, not only is Australia a tourist-friendly destination for English speakers it also can draw on the incredible boom of footy fans in Asia since the 2002 World Cup. With the venues in place and located directly within major cities (unlike many new U.S. venues in suburban outskirts) the Aussies could sneak in and win.
  • United States – Odds: 5/4 (1.25)  - Obviously I’m biased and want the U.S. to win, but I feel if there’s ever a country that should host the World Cup, it’s us. For starters, nobody can match our stadiums thanks to the NFL. Second, an influx of tourists wouldn’t even be noticed thanks to the world-class air infrastructure. Third, especially for foreigners, it’s a very unique place to visit as given the size of the country there is something for everyone. However, is it waste of a World Cup for it to take place in the U.S. given the lack of popularity of the sport? I don’t think so. I’m forced to defend soccer all the time living in the U.S. but the stats don’t lie: more people are watching and more people are following the sport with the growth of the internet. It’s time to bring the World Cup back.

For my picks I’m going to go with the bookie and choose the U.S., but I’ll make a shock choice and chose Spain /Portugal for 2018, mainly because Russia needs to grow up and put their racism in check before they are fit to host the World Cup.

So who do you think will win the World Cup bids? Feel free to comment below…

Matthew Brown is a social media professional who runs a full-time soccer blog called The Trapped Fan which focuses on international soccer.  Also an avid Vikings and Minnesota sports fan, you can follow him on Twitter: @trappedfan

Sharing This Article Supports Operation Homefront -- Here's How

Filed Under: Soccer Tagged With: Australia, Belgium, England, Japan, Netherlands, Portugal, Qatar, South Korea, Spain, United States
  • http://twitter.com/AJKauf7 AJK

    ABQ = ANYWHERE BUT QATAR!

  • Sara_Qatari Citizen

    Why not. I'm from Qatar. The world cup has never been held in the middle east. We have a good chance of winning. Did you see Qatar's presentation last night. It was the best. I did not like the US presentation they were talking about profit all the time and brought politics into it. Japan's presentation was really good. I liked the 3D technology idea. Consider the time difference in US. Qatar has a dream and hopefully it will happen. Today a lot of people are going to gather to hear the decision and celebrate together. Qatar has been improving in many sectors. Not only we have oil but also the eduction city were there are top universities from the states. We hosted the Asian Games in 2006 and succeeded. It would really be cool and interesting to have the world cup in a country that has different culture, religion but all of us will be united by football.

  • Joe

    There is going to be a time difference no matter where the world cup is held…. Thats just a sad excuse to deny a country. Also why are they deciding both 2018 and 2022 at the same time?

  • Sara_Qatari Citizen

    I'm not saying the time difference could deny a country. I'm just saying it is a disadvantage for the US. The time difference between Qatar and other countries like Europe is not like US and Europe. US held the world cup in 1996. FIFA should gave chance to other countries who did not host the world cup. This my point of view. I'm not saying let us deny US but their presentation last night was not as impressive as Qatar's and Japan's. Qatar's theme was bringing the world cup to the middle east and that Qatar has a dream of hosting the world cup. US the only focused on profit and that is not the main reason of hosting the world cup

  • Omar

    I'm from the middile-east, but i don't support qatar… all the GCC countries should burn in hell…

    either Lebanon or no one from the middile east should host the WC!!!

  • http://twitter.com/trappedfan @trappedfan

    Well looks like Qatar has won… I'm still shocked they picked them so early, so much can happen in 12 years…

  • http://twitter.com/trappedfan @trappedfan

    FIFA has some lame reason but you're right it's stupid to announce both at the same time… it's the first time I've ever seen this happen. And sure time difference is a factor but GMT is probably the most friendly time zone for the world in regards to watching.

  • http://twitter.com/trappedfan @trappedfan

    Well the dream for Qatar has come true – sure I'm a little upset as a U.S. citizen but the biggest difference between Qatar and the U.S. is Qatar has a lot of promises they've made that they now need to fulfill whereas the U.S. didn't need to promise anything because they already have everything in place. Qatar (and Russia too to a lesser extent) should send massive thanks to South Africa for not dropping the ball with their hosting of the tournament earlier this year.

  • AJK

    Quite an intolerant statement out of the middle east, but then agan, just another shortcoming of the region is lack of tolerance.

  • http://twitter.com/AJKauf7 AJK

    Understand, Sara, and congrats, but you have a bias as a citizen. FACTS show it's a bad move (as of now). Like Russia — also a terrible choice due to their current racism/intolerance/anti freedom/anti west agenda (moving back twrd USSR days rapidly), Qatar has major issues.

    While it is one of the most developed, westernized, 'moderate' Muslim nations, it's still not very free. Islamic/Sharia law still runs the nation, and they are basically allies of Iran. Iran, of all places. I don't expect FIFA to care, since like most global bodies (the UN etc) they always have everything morally backwards, but do you care that Qatar 's Prime Minister has given his support to Iran’s right to nuclear technology, and considers Iran’s nuclear project to be for peaceful nuclear energy purposes. Who on earth — aside from the radical left in America and western Europe — would do that?

  • http://twitter.com/AJKauf7 AJK

    Further, considerting the gov't style, I doubt there is much religious, media and gender freedom as compared to the rest of the world.

    And though I am not a 'cimate change' moonbat, it's the height of hypocrisy for a 'global' group like FIFA to reward the world's highest per-capita carbon dioxide emissions producer. (This is almost double the next highest per-capita emitting country, and they are three times those of the United States. Qatar had the highest per-capita carbon dioxide emissions in the WORLD for the past 18 years. Despite being a desert state they are also one of the highest consumers of water per capita per day.

  • http://twitter.com/AJKauf7 AJK

    Lastly, a friend of mine who is an eco-expert notes:

    I was dumbfounded as to how Qatar was able to convince the committee, especially in light of the huge environmental and energy concerns that must be met. Somehow, they say that they are going to be able to air condition an entire non-domed stadium in July, where the average temperature is 115 degrees. This was just terrible on the part of FIFA, not just on the immediate concerns at stake here, but more importantly on the message and precedent it sets. I have to think there was something shady going on here.

    So you may be happy, and this may not affect world stability, but it's a very bad choice. FIFA is a corrupt joke. Enjoy the 130 degree heat.

  • AJK

    The International Olympic Committee, long led by a member of the pre-WW2 Spanish fascist party, has always been corrupt. It is a model that governs the "World Cup" Committee. Power, adoration, and financial kick-backs in combination form its ruling ethic. Wasn't Nazi Germany awarded the Olympic Games in 1936 irrespective of its intense racialism. The Soviet Union later won the right to hold this event. While one has a United Nations completely dominated by non-democratic forces, being a mench in worldly matters be they be political, cultural, or concerning sport, will never cut it.

    Australia's bid was led by a Holocaust survivor who fought in Israel's War of Independence as a young man. And by the way, as an immigrant to Australia in 1952, he is now a billionaire businessman with shopping mall assets even in the USA. I wonder whether an emotional presentation from such a person grated the sensibilities of a number of the decision makers.

    Like the Nobel "Peace" Prize, getting awarded something by FIFA or the IOC is not to be celebrated but shunned.

  • Ayian

    fifa should give

    2018 spain/portugal
    2022 japan

    i am from japan