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NEW YORK -- The U.S. bid committee hoping to stage the World Cup in 2018 or 2022 sent initial letters last week to public officials and stadium operators of 70 potential sites in 50 markets for soccer's showcase tournament. Six of the stadiums used for the 1994 tournament were contacted, including Soldier Field in Chicago; the Cotton Bowl in Dallas; the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando; the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.; Stanford Stadium in California; and RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C.

Also on the list were new stadiums that will open this year in Arlington, Texas, and next year in East Rutherford, N.J.; and stadiums that have opened since the 1994 World Cup in Foxborough, Mass.; Landover, Md. Sixty-five stadiums have a capacity above 60,000, including 20 above 80,000. Among the stadiums listed were Lambeau Field, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, University of Michigan Stadium and the Yale Bowl.

"We will soon begin discussions with officials from throughout the U.S. in the name of presenting a world-class proposal to FIFA and the global soccer community," U.S. Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati said in a statement. FIFA calls for each bidder to propose at least 12 stadiums of 40,000 or more, including an 80,000-capacity venue for the opening game and the final. U.S. bidders asked to hear back from the candidates by April 17.

Australia, England, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico and Russia also are bidding, with Netherlands-Belgium and Portugal-Spain submitting joint bids. Qatar and South Korea have applied for 2022 only. Final paperwork is due to FIFA by May 2010, and FIFA's executive committee is to vote in December 2010. England and Spain are considered co-favorites for 2018, with the U.S. expected to have a better chance for 2022.

Here's the list of the 70 locations asked to "bid" for this:

Atlanta, Ga. Georgia Dome Atlanta, Ga.
Atlanta, Ga. Sanford Stadium Athens, Ga.
Austin, Texas Royal Texas Memorial Stadium Austin, Texas
Baltimore, Md. M&T Bank Stadium Baltimore, Md.
Baton Rouge, La. Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, La.
Birmingham, Ala. Legion Field Birmingham, Ala.
Birmingham, Ala. Bryant-Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Boston, Mass. Gillette Stadium Foxborough, Mass.
Buffalo, N.Y. Ralph Wilson Stadium Orchard Park, N.Y.
Cedar Rapids, Iowa Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, Iowa
Champaign, Ill. Memorial Stadium Champaign, Ill.
Charlotte, N.C. Bank of America Stadium Charlotte, N.C.
Chicago, Ill. Soldier Field Chicago, Ill.
Cincinnati, Ohio Paul Brown Stadium Cincinnati, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland Browns Stadium Cleveland, Ohio
Columbia, Mo. Faurot Field Columbia, Mo.
Columbia, S.C. Williams-Brice Stadium Columbia, S.C.
Columbus, Ga. Jordan-Hare Stadium Auburn, Ala.
Columbus, Ohio Ohio Stadium Columbus, Ohio
Dallas, Texas Cotton Bowl Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas Dallas Cowboys New Stadium Arlington, Texas
Denver, Colo. Invesco Field Denver, Colo.
Detroit, Mich. University of Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, Mich.
Detroit, Mich. Ford Field Detroit, Mich.
Detroit, Mich. Spartan Stadium East Lansing, Mich.
Fayetteville, Ark. Reynolds Razorback Stadium Fayetteville, Ark.
Green Bay, Wis. Lambeau Field Green Bay, Wis.
Greenville, S.C. Memorial Stadium Clemson, S.C.
Harrisburg, Pa. Beaver Stadium University Park, Pa.
Houston, Texas Reliant Stadium Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas Rice Stadium Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas Kyle Field College Station, Texas
Indianapolis, Ind. Lucas Oil Stadium Indianapolis, Ind.
Jacksonville, Fla. Jacksonville Municipal Stadium Jacksonville, Fla.
Jacksonville, Fla. Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, Fla.
Kansas City, Mo. Arrowhead Stadium Kansas City, Mo.
Knoxville, Tenn. Neyland Stadium Knoxville, Tenn.
Lexington, Ky. Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, Ky.
Los Angeles, Calif. Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, Calif.
Los Angeles, Calif. Rose Bowl Pasadena, Calif.
Madison, Wis. Camp Randall Stadium Madison, Wis.
Miami, Fla. Dolphin Stadium Miami Gardens, Fla.
Minneapolis, Minn. TCF Bank Stadium Minneapolis, Minn.
Minneapolis, Minn. Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, Minn.
Nashville, Tenn. LP Field Nashville, Tenn.
New Haven, Conn. Yale Bowl New Haven, Conn.
New Orleans, La. Superdome New Orleans, La.
New York, N.Y. Meadowlands Stadium East Rutherford, N.J.
Oklahoma City, Okla. Oklahoma Memorial Stadium Norman, Okla.
Omaha, Neb. Memorial Stadium Lincoln, Neb.
Orlando, Fla. Florida Citrus Bowl Orlando, Fla.
Philadelphia, Pa. Lincoln Financial Field Philadelphia, Pa.
Phoenix, Ariz. University of Phoenix Stadium Glendale, Ariz.
Phoenix, Ariz. Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, Ariz.
Pittsburgh, Pa. Heinz Field Pittsburgh, Pa.
Roanoke, Va. Lane Stadium Blacksburg, Va.
Salt Lake City, Utah LaVell Edwards Stadium Provo, Utah
San Antonio, Texas Alamodome San Antonio, Texas
San Diego, Calif. Qualcomm Stadium San Diego, Calif.
San Fran/Oakland, Calif. Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Oakland, Calif.
San Fran/Oakland, Calif. Stanford Stadium Palo Alto, Calif.
San Fran/Oakland, Calif. California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, Calif.
Seattle, Wash. Qwest Field Seattle, Wash.
Seattle, Wash. Husky Stadium Seattle, Wash.
South Bend, Ind. Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, Ind.
St. Louis, Mo. Edward Jones Dome St. Louis, Mo.
Tallahassee, Fla. Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, Fla.
Tampa, Fla. Raymond James Stadium Tampa, Fla.
Washington, D.C. RFK Memorial Stadium Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C. FedEx Field Landover, Md.

The Yale Bowl was also considered as a host site in 1994 but wasn't selected. My mother was on the New Haven Board of Aldermen at the time (she still is) and was part of the process. I would have attended any and all games in New Haven, but it didn't happen.

Sorry, but this is old news. The list has already been trimmed twice, from 70 to 58 and now to 45, with most of the stadiums cut being college - problems either size of field or the school is in the middle of nowhere.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/soccer ... _plan.html

Georgia Dome, Atlanta*
M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore*
Legion Field, Birmingham
Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Mass.*
Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte*
Soldier Field, Chicago*
Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati*
Cleveland Browns Stadium, Cleveland*
Ohio Stadium, Columbus
Cotton Bowl, Dallas
Cowboys Stadium, Arlington, Tex.*
INVESCO Field, Denver*
Ford Field, Detroit*
Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Mich.
Razorback Stadium, Fayetteville, Ark.
Reliant Stadium, Houston*
Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis*
Jacksonville Stadium, Jacksonville*
Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City*
Neyland Stadium, Knoxville, Tenn.
Sports City USA, Las Vegas
L.A. Coliseum, Los Angeles
Rose Bowl, Pasadena, Calif.
Land Shark Stadium, Miami*
Metrodome, Minneapolis*
TCF Bank Stadium, Minneapolis
LP Field, Nashville*
Superdome, New Orleans*
New Meadowlands Stadium, New Jersey*
Citrus Bowl, Orlando
Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia*
Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Ariz.
U of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Ariz.*
Heinz Field, Pittsburgh*
Rice-Eccles Stadium, Salt Lake City
Alamodome, San Antonio
Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego*
Stanford Stadium, Palo Alto, Calif.
Oakland-Alameda Coliseum, Oakland*
Husky Stadium, Seattle
Qwest Field, Seattle*
Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis*
Raymond James Stadium, Tampa*
FedEx Field, Landover, Md.*
RFK Stadium, Washington

*NFL stadium

I really hope we get the bid

NEW YORK -- The USA Bid Committee today announced the 27 United States cities that passed the third stage of the city and stadium proposal review process and remain under consideration as potential host venues for the FIFA World Cup™ in 2018 or 2022. These cities will continue working with the USA Bid Committee both on the development and promotion of their local and national campaigns. Officials representing a total of 38 cities received the Requests for Proposal (RFP) and had from June 16 to July 29 to complete their proposals and return them to the USA Bid Committee. The RFPs requested information from city officials covering a vast array of subjects such as tourism, climate, security, transportation, training sites, promotion and more.

"The USA Bid Committee is pleased to have received comprehensive responses from city officials and local organizing committees across the United States," said Sunil Gulati, the Chairman of the USA Bid Committee and President of U.S. Soccer. "The overwhelming interest and creativity shown by the candidate cities made our extensive review process that much more difficult in narrowing down the list."

The 11 cities removed during this round were: Birmingham, Ala.; Cincinnati, Ohio; Columbus, Ohio; Fayetteville, Ark.; Knoxville, Tenn.; Las Vegas, Nev.; Minneapolis, Minn.; New Orleans, La.; Pittsburgh, Pa.; Salt Lake City, Utah and San Antonio, Tex.

http://web.mlsnet.com/news/mls_news.jsp ... &fext=.jsp

Please please please pick Charlotte. I'd love to see a World Cup match in North Carolina.