U.S. bid committee cuts list to 27 markets

• by Paul Kennedy  @pkedit, Aug 21, 2009

[WORLD CUP 2018/2022] The USA Bid Committee seeking to bring the 2018 or 2022 World Cup to the United States has narrowed the number of stadiums it has under consideration to 32 representing 27 markets. Thirteen stadiums representing 11 markets, the majority of them college towns, were dropped from consideration.

Officials in the original 38 markets had until July 29 to complete their proposals and return them to the USA Bid Committee.  The requested information covered a vast array of subjects such as tourism, climate, security, transportation, training sites, promotion and more.

The remaining venues average almost 74,000 in capacity. The short list includes seven domed or retractable roof venues.

"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 U.S. application is due to FIFA in May 2010. FIFA and its 24-member Executive Committee will study the bids, conduct site visits and name the two host nations for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments in December 2010.

Note: c=college football stadium; NFL=NFL stadium
*under construction

REMAINING STADIUMS
CITY (STADIUM) CAPACITY
1. Ann Arbor, Mich. (c-University of Michigan Stadium) 108,000
2. Dallas, Texas (NFL-Dallas Cowboys New Stadium) 100,000
3. Los Angeles, Calif. (c-Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum) 93,607
4. Pasadena, Calif. (c-Rose Bowl) 92,000+
5. Landover, Md. (NFL-FedEx Field) 91,704
6. Dallas, Texas (Cotton Bowl) 89,000
7. East Rutherford, N.J. (*NFL-Meadowlands Stadium) 82,000
7. Jacksonville, Fla. (NFL-Jacksonville Municipal Stadium) 82,000
9. Kansas City, Mo. (NFL-Arrowhead Stadium) 77,000
10. Denver, Colo. (NFL-Invesco Field) 76,125
11. Miami Gardens, Fla. (NFL-Land Shark Stadium) 75,540
12. Charlotte, N.C. (NFL-Bank of America Stadium) 73,778
13. Cleveland, Ohio (NFL-Cleveland Browns Stadium) 73,200
14. Seattle, Wash. (c-Husky Stadium) 72,500
15. Foxborough, Mass. (NFL-Gillette Stadium) 71,693
16. Houston, Texas (NFL-Reliant Stadium) 71,500
17. Atlanta, Ga. (NFL-Georgia Dome) 71,250
18. Baltimore, Md. (NFL-M&T Bank Stadium) 71,008
19. Glendale, Ariz. (NFL-University of Phoenix Stadium) 71,000
20. San Diego, Calif. (NFL-Qualcomm Stadium) 70,500
21. Nashville, Tenn. (NFL-LP Field) 69,143
22. Philadelphia, Pa. (NFL-Lincoln Financial Field) 67,594
23. Detroit, Mich. (NFL-Ford Field) 67,188
24. Seattle, Wash. (NFL-Qwest Field) 67,000
25. St. Louis, Mo. (NFL-Edward Jones Dome) 66,000
26. Tampa, Fla. (NFL-Raymond James Stadium) 65,856
27. Orlando, Fla. (Florida Citrus Bowl) 65,616
28. Indianapolis, Ind. (NFL-Lucas Oil Stadium) 64,200
29. Oakland, Calif. (NFL-Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum) 63,026
30. Chicago, Ill. (NFL-Soldier Field) 61,000
31. Stanford, Calif. (c-Stanford Stadium) 50,500
32. Washington, D.C. (RFK Memorial Stadium) 45,600

REMOVED STADIUMS
CITY (STADIUM) CAPACITY
Columbus, Ohio (c-Ohio Stadium) 101,568
Knoxville, Tenn. (c-Neyland Stadium) 100,011
Tempe, Ariz. (c-Sun Devil Stadium) 73,500
Fayetteville, Ark. (c-Reynolds Razorback Stadium) 72,000
New Orleans, La. (NFL-Superdome) 70,000
Birmingham, Ala. (c-Legion Field) 70,000
Cincinnati, Ohio (NFL-Paul Brown Stadium) 65,535
San Antonio, Texas (Alamodome) 65,000
Pittsburgh, Pa. (NFL-Heinz Field) 65,000
Minneapolis, Minn. (NFL-Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome) 64,000
Minneapolis, Minn. (*c-TCF Bank Stadium) 50,200
Salt Lake City, Utah (c-Rice-Eccles Stadium) 45,603
Las Vegas, Nev. (proposed-Sports City USA) N/A