Plymouth and Milton Keynes host cities for World Cup bid

Published on Wednesday 16 December 2009 22:14

LIVERPOOL has been included as a host city for England's 2018 World Cup bid despite uncertainty over the proposed new Anfield stadium but Hull, Derby and Leicester have missed out at the expense of surprise inclusions Milton Keynes and Plymouth.

Twelve cities and up to 17 potential venues have been selected by England 2018 including Milton Keynes, Plymouth and Bristol. England 2018 deputy chairman Lord Mawhinney, who headed the selection panel, said: "It would have been very hard to envisage an impressive World Cup bid with host cities that did not include iconic Liverpool. England is fortunate to have so many good stadia and I would like to congratulate all of the applicant host cities for the seven months of really hard work they have put in.

"We have chosen cities which present the lowest possible risk to Fifa and it's Fifa who will make the final decision. There will also be a lot of disappointed football fans around the country I understand that."

Outside of London, Manchester was the only city to have two stadia included – Old Trafford and the City of Manchester Stadium.

Manchester United chief executive David Gill said: "It is great news that Old Trafford is part of England's bid. It is the most historic of all the venues, celebrating its centenary in February 2010, and has hosted some major games in recent years. I am confident that its inclusion makes England's exceptional bid even stronger."

In London, Wembley and Arsenal's Emirates Stadium have both been chosen as has a third venue from either the new White Hart Lane or the Olympic Stadium.

Mawhinney added: "With the new White Hart Lane or the Olympic Stadium we ran up against a problem where other people's timetable didn't quite mesh with ours. We have seen pictures of the new iconic White Hart Lane stadium and it's going to be very splendid but at the moment it's at the planning point.

"As far as the Olympic Stadium is concerned ... there are some that think it should continue to be an 80,000-seater stadium and other voices saying the stadium should be reduced to 25,000. We don't get to make that decision, that's someone else's decision."

If England win the bid – the vote is in December next year – then Fifa would choose 12 venues in 2013.

Plymouth bid chairman Doug Fletcher said: "This is really fantastic news for the people of Plymouth, Devon and Cornwall."

Championship club Plymouth Argyle are planning a revamp of their Home Park stadium,

with the first phase due to start at the end of the 2010-2011 season.

MK Dons chairman Pete Winkelman insists he is not surprised after the Coca-Cola League One side's stadium:mk home was named as one of the candidate host stadiums.

The Dons only moved into the Buckinghamshire town in 2003 but have seen attendances steadily rise since they moved to their state-of-the-art arena in 2007. With excellent transport links and the support of both residents and the public sector, Winkelman was confident of being chosen.

He said: "It doesn't surprise me – we've had complete political unity in the city and everyone from the police to the NHS have been backing the bid. That is what made our bid stand out."

Winkelman is no stranger to adversity after relocating Wimbledon up the M1 and is confident that the Dons will justify a home of over 40,000 seats by the time the world's best players may be in attendance.

He said: "It's reward for the emphasis that the city of Milton Keynes has put on football and its development. The city wasn't even on the map when we hosted the World Cup in 1966 so this will be a huge part of the history of Milton Keynes.We have got a role to play, stadium:mk is only halfway there at the moment but people have seen the quality of it and we have the record of delivering the infrastructure. The upper tier of the stadium is there already so it will go to 32,000 very easily, we just need to bolt the seats in. But to get up to World Cup standard of 44,000 the roof will come off on the east and north stands and a third tier will go on. It will be very similar to the City of Manchester Stadium.

"My task over the next few years is to continue to grow this football club to ensure that we can fill those seats after the World Cup but what a challenge to be involved in."

SELECTED STADIUMS

Sunderland: Stadium of Light.

London: Wembley, Emirates Stadium, the new White Hart Lane or Olympic Stadium.

Birmingham: Villa Park.

Manchester: City of Manchester Stadium and Old Trafford.

Nottingham: the new Nottingham Forest stadium.

Leeds: Elland Road.

Sheffield: Hillsborough.

Newcastle/Gateshead: St James' Park.

Bristol: The new Ashton Vale stadium.

Plymouth: Home Park;

Liverpool: Anfield or new Anfield.

Milton Keynes: Stadium MK.