Led by Rhiannon Martin, senior competitions manager and event manager, the inspection party visited sites in Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Hamilton, Napier, Nelson, New Plymouth, Wellington and Whangarei.
As well as analysing the main components of hosting a FIFA competition including competitions, media, TV, marketing and accommodation the group also met with local council leaders and officials plus football representatives.
Of the sites visited between six and eight will be chosen as hosts and the Local Organising Committee is expected to make recommendations to FIFA, who will make the final decision.
FIFA media relations manager Monika Huser made the trip to New Zealand and says she and the other delegates were very impressed with what they saw.
“New Zealand is a beautiful country and it was great to have the opportunity to visit nine different cities with varied culture and scenery,” Huser says.
“It is clear that New Zealand is a sports-loving nation and we are impressed that the local communities are supporting the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2015 and looking forward to having such a big football competition taking place in their cities.”
In terms of their impressions of the stadium Huser says overall they pleased with what they saw.
“They are very well organised on the whole with good infrastructure even though there is some need for overlay in certain stadiums,” she says.
“We met very professionally managed stadium teams with a passion for sport, which was great to see.”
The delegates will be assessing the potential host cities based on a number of criteria including, top-quality infrastructure in the stadium and training sites, experience in organising large-scale sports events in the past, enthusiasm for the event from the local authorities adn stadium, football culture and the opportunity to develop football in schools and local communities to encourage more young boys and girls to regularly play.
LOC interim project manager Peter O’Hara travelled with the delegation during the nationwide tour and says the 2011 Rugby World Cup has left an excellent legacy in terms of international facilities.
“My impression is that the stadia and cities have generally made a passionate, enthusiastic bid to be involved in the event,” O’Hara says.
“They understand the significance of the FIFA U-20 World Cup and want to be a part of it. Upgrades to stadia as a result of the Rugby World Cup have significantly improved facilities.”
The hosts will be chosen following a joint decision making process between FIFA and the LOC, with each party having their own responsibilities.
“There will be some key meetings over the course of the next few months between FIFA and the LOC to take key decision on the host cities,” Huser says.
“The timeline is still being defined but hopefully the decision will be soon so as to allow the host cities, stadium and training sites to begin preparations for the competition.”
New Zealand has previously played host to the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 1999 and the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in 2008 and enjoys a good history in hosting FIFA events successfully.
For more on the world game go to www.fifa.com

Share