FIFA will choose the host nations for both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups in Zurich on Thursday. Following is a factbox on the spending plans detailed by each of the bidders.
The four bids to host the 2018 World Cup:
England:
Stadiums: England has put forward a list of 17 stadiums in 12 cities, though that includes some alternatives. Seven of the 17 stadiums named are already in place and would require no significant work. Five more are in place but would need to be renovated while five are to be built from scratch (or are already under construction). The total cost for the programme is projected at $2.54 billion.
Running costs: FIFA asked bidders for projected costs of hosting not only the World Cup but the Confederations Cup, a small-scale international tournament best thought of as a World Cup dress rehearsal held the previous year. England's projected running costs are $722.9 million.
Ticket sales: England's projection is to put up 3,397,000 tickets for sale.
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Netherlands/Belgium:
Stadiums: The joint-bid puts forward 14 stadiums in 12 host cities. Seven of the stadiums would be new builds, with six existing and requiring renovation and one currently ready for use. The budget for stadium construction and renovation is projected at $2.43 billion.
Running costs: Projected running costs for the Confederations Cup and World Cup are put at $541.6 million.
Ticket sales: A World Cup in the Netherlands and Belgium would see an estimated 3,304,000 tickets put up for sale.
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Russia:
Stadiums: A successful bid from Russia would lead to a massive building project. Russia has put forward proposals for 16 stadiums in 13 host cities, with only three current stadiums being renovated and 13 to be built from scratch. The construction project is budgeted at $3.82 billion -- the largest figure among the four European bidders.
Running costs: Staging the 2017 Confederations Cup and 2018 World Cup in Russia would cost $641.3 million, the bid has estimated.
Tickets: Russia would put up a projected 3,141,000 tickets for sale at a 2018 World Cup.
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Spain/Portugal: The joint-bid from the Iberians proposes 21 stadiums in 18 host cities but FIFA's technical evaluation notes that this is pending a final cut. Of these 21, nine exist but would require renovation, seven would be ready without the need for significant work and five are new builds. The joint-bid has estimated the cost of this programme at almost $2 billion.
Running costs: Spain/Portugal expects running costs for a 2017 Confederations Cup and 2018 World Cup to hit $675.6 million.
Tickets: The Iberian bid reckons the total number of sellable tickets for the World Cup at 3,674,000 -- the highest of the four bidders for 2018.
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2022:
Japan:
Stadiums: Japan would use 13 stadiums in 11 host cities and according to their estimates not much work would need to be done. Of the 13, 12 already exist and just one would need to be built -- not surprising when you consider that Japan co-hosted the event with South Korea as recently as 2002. The total budget for stadium construction and renovation is between $700 million and $1.3 billion.
Running costs: Japan put its budget for the delivery of the Confederations Cup in 2021 and the World Cup in 2022 at $843.4 million.
Ticket sales: Japan would expect to sell up to 3,280,000 tickets at the World Cup.
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South Korea: The 2002 World Cup co-hosts (see above) propose using 14 stadiums in 12 host cities. As with Japan, all but one of the stadiums exist (with some renovation needed). The 14th is being built for the 2014 Asian Games. The total budget for stadium building and renovation is put at $877 million.
Running costs: South Korea has submitted the lowest estimated running costs of all nine bidders for the two tournaments, just $496.6 million to stage the Confederations Cup and World Cup.
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Qatar: Qatar proposes a much larger building programme. Under the proposals submitted to FIFA, Qatar would renovate three stadiums and build nine new ones, with the 12 stadiums divided among seven host cities. The total cost of the construction and renovation would be around $3 billion, the bid estimates.
Running costs: Qatar has submitted a budget of $645.5 million to run the Confederations Cup in 2021 and the World Cup the following year.
Ticket sales: Qatar projects a total number of 2,869,000 tickets going on sale at the 2022 World Cup.
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United States: The United States has put forward 18 stadiums in 18 host cities -- the number to be cut down at a later date -- and every one of them is ready for use without significant renovation, although some adaptation will be needed as most are used for American football at present. There is therefore no budget for stadium construction/renovation work.
Running costs: The US estimates costs of $661.2 million to run the Confederations Cup in 2021 and the World Cup in 2022.
Ticket sales: The estimate for the total number of tickets a U.S. World Cup could put on sale is 4,957,000 -- by the far the largest amount of any of the bidders for 2022, or indeed for 2018.
Source: FIFA evaluation reports.
