On Thursday, England will find out if years of campaigning have been enough to see them announced as the host of the 2018 World Cup. With stiff competition from the likes of Russia and a joint bid from Spain and Portugal, there is plenty of work to be done if England are to host the tournament for the first time since 1966. But if they are successful what impact will the tournament have on the Premier League?

Probably the most visible impact of a successful bid would be an improvement to several Premier League grounds. Sunderland, Aston Villa, Newcastle and Manchester City could all be in line for stadium expansions if the bid is successful, while Liverpool could get help in the development of a new stadium.

There will also be a real improvement in the training facilities of dozens of clubs in England, as they look to be the base for the 31 countries that would arrive in the summer of 2018. This could only be good for the long term development of English football, as players benefit from better facilities.

Long term improvements is something often talked about with World Cup bids, as countries look to promote the ‘Legacy’ that the tournament will create. In many ways English football is still benefiting from the legacy created from Euro 96. This was the tournament when England fans were finally able to portray a non aggressive image to the world, after years of association with hooliganism.

A similar legacy would be a massive boost to Premier League football and could really boost some of the dwindling attendances we see in the league. A World Cup would generate massive interest in the game, and which could only boost the numbers of fans who attend matches. This in turn could help in attracting more of the world’s best players to the Premier League as they look to be part of the buzz surrounding football in England.

So the advantages to the Premier League are there, but in reality England is really facing a struggle to persuade the FIFA delegates that they are the best option to host the tournament, and if England do lose out could this have a detrimental effect on the league?

In my opinion no, because in many ways I think none of us will be particularly surprised if the England bid is unsuccessful. I don’t think the league needs England to host the World Cup, it would be nice if it happened, but the Premier League will cope perfectly well if FIFA send the World Cup to Russia for example.

What do you think? Will the 2018 World Cup be hosted by England? If so would it change the Premier League in anyway?

Osaze Odemwingie has escaped the sick Racist taunts that marred his time with Lokomotiv Moscow

West Brom fans will today display a banner in support of Osaze Odemwingie after the striker received a sick racist taunt from ‘supporters’ at his former club Lokomotiv Moscow.  Baggies fans will have a created a banner which will read “Thanks Lokomotiv”.

The touching gesture is in retaliation to the ”Thanks West Brom” banner that featured a banana image. It  demonstrates just how far the English game has come over the last 30 years. Football in England has come that far that most of us are sickened to hear any form of racism in a football ground.

Odemwingie himself admits that although racist behaviour is only committed by a select few,  Russia does have a problem. He told BBC Sport: “Some fans treated me well – only a group of supporters have shown how narrow minded they are to the world.

“Coloured players feel the open racism there and I recall a game against CSKA Moscow when their fans started the sick noises – I wouldn’t have any of it and gave it back to them.

 ”This was widely publicised because photographers had shots of my protest but still nothing was done to curb it. Sadly, it’s a picture of a minority group in Russia – it really makes you feel sick but that is what it is. “

 Thankfully Odemwingie should be safe from the racist taunts at West Brom. I look back to England’s clash with Spain in 2004, which saw Ashley Cole and Shaun Wright Phillips on the end of disgusting and unacceptable chants from the home crowd. I think that was the night when I really realised just how far the English game was ahead of most.

 But FIFA just don’t act on these incidents. The Spanish Football Federation were fined £44,750 for their fans actions that night, a punishment that in the multi-million pound world of football is nothing short of laughable.  Similar incidents have happened across Europe, most notably in Italy, but yet again FIFA have handed out feeble punishments, which barely cover the crime.

Now FIFA has the opportunity to act once again, but my betting is that they don’t.  If Russia host the World Cup after a sickening display of racism like that, it would be a complete sham, and a disgrace football.

Of course I want England to host the World Cup, but even if we weren’t bidding to host the 2018 tournament, I would be outraged at FIFA’s continued tolerance of racist behaviour.  Hopefully FIFA finally make a stand, but I won’t be holding my breath just yet.

The United States announced this week that it’s interested in hosting the 2018 World Cup. No surprise there. They’ve been talking about bidding for the 2018 World Cup for quite some time although an official campaign launch isn’t expected until later this summer. However, the British media treated the news as a revelation and a threat to England’s own 2018 World Cup bid, but I have a solution which may satisfy both camps.

World Cup 2018 will be one of the most competitive bidding processes. In addition to heavyweight bids such as England and the USA, other countries interested in bidding are Russia, China, Australia, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Mexico, Canada, the Benelux countries (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg) and a joint bid by Israel and Palestine.

It would be a massive achievement for either England or the United States to win the bid against those countries. Both face stiff competition from countries that have never hosted the tournament. Plus FIFA will be salivating at the prospect of expanding the World Cup into countries that would generate huge amounts of revenue from new sponsors (yes, I’m looking at you China).

My plan to make the 2018 World Cup the best one yet is simple. Instead of competing against each other and offering weaker bids, England and the United States should join together and launch a joint bid.

You may think the idea is ridiculous, but consider the following arguments:

1. Joint bids are all the rage right now. Euro 2008 will be hosted by Austria and Switzerland. Euro 2012 will be hosted by Poland and Ukraine. World Cup 2002 was hosted by South Korea and Japan. So, without a doubt, the precedent has been set.
2. The distances between the United Kingdom and United States are not a concern. The driving time between the two farthest cities in this summer’s Euro 2008 competition (Geneva to Vienna) is more than nine hours (the mode of transport used by teams in the tournament will be buses). We all know how convenient it is to fly from the UK to the States, so consider the following flying times for direct flights between the recommended eight host cities:
   1. London to New York: 7 hours, 25 minutes
   2. Manchester to Chicago: 8 hours, 15 minutes
   3. London to Miami: 9 hours, 5 minutes
   4. Bristol to Newark: 7 hours, 55 minutes
   5. Birmingham to Newark: 7 hours, 50 minutes

Birmingham and Bristol are preferred over other cities in England because they have direct flights to and from the United States. If the FA wants to expand the number of cities that host matches in the UK, that’s fine as long as they’re within close driving range to airports in London, Manchester, Birmingham and Bristol. The FA has already discussed the possibility of Bristol being selected as a host city, so a new stadium would need to be built there (groundsharing between Bristol City and Bristol Rovers would be the smart choice). Birmingham would be an ideal choice for building a new, larger stadium (or Villa Park could be used).

The US cities would be primarily east coast locations except for Chicago (Soldier Field). New York could have its own stadium by 2018. Stadiums in other cities could include Meadowlands (near Newark, New Jersey) and Dolphin Stadium (Miami).

The United States and England combining forces would present a formidable bid. Sure, there’ll be plenty of egos and pride at stake, so it’s possible that England’s FA (Football Association) wouldn’t consider the idea, but if the race gets more competitive, the best opportunity to bring the World Cup back to England may be to join forces with the country that hosted the most successful World Cup in its history, the United States (World Cup 94).