Magazine - FIFA Panel Winding up OZ Tour

By Editor in Football on 30th Jul 2010 9:00

The final chance for Australia's 2022 World Cup bid team to impress the visiting FIFA delegation will arrive today when its whirlwind three-day inspection tour concludes.

Exactly what impression Australia has made on the FIFA party will remain secret, with the six-man delegation due to formally report back to the game's governing body on the suitability of Australia's bid in the next few weeks. Yesterday, the delegation was ushered through Brisbane and Melbourne, specifically Suncorp Stadium and the MCG - two venues keen on hosting several group stage and knockout matches and, in the case of the latter, the event's final.

In Brisbane the panel was also guided by the Queensland Sports Minister, Phil Reeves, through an exhibition of Gold Coast's Skilled Stadium and Townsville's Dairy Farmers Stadium.

The delegation then headed to Melbourne, where they were greeted at the MCG by the Victorian Premier, John Brumby, and then treated to a display involving nearly 500 schoolchildren and six players from Melbourne Heart, including 2010 World Cup squad member Michael Beauchamp. ''They asked us what the atmosphere was like at the MCG with a big crowd … and we told them it was one of the world's great stadiums.''

The nature of the visit has remained a matter of intense privacy and extreme security from the outset. The tour began in Sydney on Monday, where the delegation was shown through ANZ Stadium, before meeting the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, and all state and territory leaders at a function at Kirribilli House.

Source & More: www.smh.com.au

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