People may ask 'why Hull?', but what I say to that question is 'why not?' Hull has a very strong case to be part of the bid to bring the World Cup finals to England.

We are the gateway to Europe with thousands of passengers arriving via the P&O ferryport every week, while we have already proved with the construction of the KC Stadium how various partners in the city can work together to make things happen.

Hull also hosts Premier League football and the sell-out crowds prove this is a city that enjoys its football. City's promotion to the top flight has boosted Hull's profile massively and visitor numbers are up 15 per cent over the past year, a rise we believe has a lot to do with the success of the football club.

We have been hugely encouraged by the feedback we received during visits to Hull by the inspection teams working on behalf of the 2018 campaign.

Even when we pointed out potential problems such as the lack of four and five star hotels, they were positive and pointed out how Hull's catchment area can include places like York.

One area the inspection team were particularly impressed with was how the KC Stadium is already a community facility for Hull, which we were told is unique in terms of the other cities. We want healthier lifestyles to be a legacy.

Another plus in our favour is the parkland surrounding the KC Stadium. Somewhere like Arsenal's Emirates Stadium is hemmed in on all sides, whereas the KC Stadium is not. That opens up all sorts of possibilities in terms of corporate areas. We also believe being a host city would lead to significant regeneration in the area.

The KC Stadium capacity is not as big as it needs to be just yet but, if successful in becoming part of the bid that will go forward to FIFA, the planning applications will be submitted during the coming year.

We have tentative drawings already in place and the very latest we would be looking at completing the extension work on the stadium for permament seats would be 2016.


Councillor Andrew Carter, Joint leader of Leeds City Council

Leeds is the capital of the region and boasts a very successful track record with regards staging major events such as this summer's Ashes cricket Test at Headingley.

Elland Road has also hosted big crowds already this season for football and, just a couple of weeks ago, the Four Nations rugby league game between England and Australia. Leeds also proved to be a successful host during the last major football tournament to be held in England, Euro 96, so there can be little doubt that Leeds has a pedigree for staging major events.

It is not just in sport, either, with crowds of 50,000-70,000 having been accommodated at Temple Newsam for events such as 'Party in the Park'. We do not run Leeds Festival but we do make sure everyone gets to and from the site safely, while also minimising the impact on local residents. By 2012, we will also have our long-awaited Arena up and running to once again underline how capable Leeds is of staging major events.

In terms of the benefits to Leeds that would come from staging the World Cup, we estimate it would create inward investment across the city and the region of as much as £150m.

That would represent a huge boost to the local community and would mean that, unlike the Olympics in 2012, a massive amount of money would be generated for people outside of London.

Over the past five years, we have worked very hard to raise our game as a city. The amount of positive publicity that would come from hosting a World Cup would build on that good work and make the city known throughout the world. We also believe it would leave a tremendous legacy for Leeds in terms of facilities to promote youth football for both boys and girls. That would be a fantastic legacy to leave the next generation.

We want to be a host city. We have the track record, we have the facilities and we are a one-team city and a one-ground city, meaning there are none of the rivalries between two clubs wanting to be part of the World Cup bid that other cities have.

We believe we will be putting forward to the Football Association a spectacular bid, which will not only ensure a festival of football in 2018 but also a lasting and positive legacy for the city of Leeds.


Councillor Paul Scriven, Leader of Sheffield City Council.

It is hard to imagine a city more suited to hosting a World Cup than Sheffield.

This is a city where people grow up with football; a passion which stays with them as a source of enjoyment and inspiration in their adult lives.

In Sheffield playgrounds the game is more of a hot topic than the X-Factor. And that goes for 10-year-old Tom's Saturday hat-trick at Endcliffe Park, just the same as it does for international players in our two professional league teams. A kickabout in the park is something you can take for granted in England's greenest city. There are 50 to choose from.

Sheffield is the birthplace of football, where the first club, Sheffield FC, was founded in 1857. And it is still going strong.

The same spark of passion can be found in 5,000 teams in Sheffield and Hallamshire. Every goal is a victory for one of 120,000 people who are involved each week.

Football is more popular in Sheffield schools than in most cities in the country boasting high participation rates. It isn't just the boys either. The city is home to one of England's largest female leagues.

As you would expect being a city of its size, Sheffield has a well-connected public transport system, we are one of the few English cities with a supertram, which is used by 36,000 people a day, helping to keep the city on the move. Added to this, we are at the heart of the motorway network and within an hour's travel of five airports.

Both of our clubs have permission to improve their grounds but our bid hinges as much on the character of Sheffield residents as it does on what we can deliver on paper.

What has inspired people across the city isn't their allegiance to a team, or a desire to see England play on home soil. People who remember Euro 96 want the next generation to feel that same sense of pride and to feel that the eyes of the world are upon them.

Sheffield is an international city that welcomes visitors from the heart and we can help England put on a fantastic World Cup.


Who else is in the bidding?

The 15 cities hoping to be part of England's World Cup bid are:

Birmingham,
Bristol,
Derby,
Hull,
Leeds,
Leicester,
Liverpool,
London (including Wembley)
Manchester,
Milton Keynes,
Newcastle/ Gateshead,
Nottingham,
Plymouth,
Sheffield,
Sunderland.