Beckham holds 2018 hope

David Beckham is hoping he can play an influential role in persuading Fifa delegates to vote in favour of England’s bid to stage the 2018 World Cup.

Fifa’s executive committee will decide on Thursday in Zurich which country has won the right to stage the tournament in 2018 and there are four bids in the running.

England face competition from Russia, Spain/Portugal and Belgium/Holland, and the decision is expected to be a close-run affair.

Beckham will head to Zurich later this week, along with the likes of Prince William and Prime Minister David Cameron, to make one final effort to secure the tournament for England.

The former Three Lions captain is remaining upbeat about England’s prospects of landing the World Cup and is keen to play his part in the process.
History and tradition

He said: “Hopefully I will make a difference. There are many people, like Prince William, who have been involved and working hard for the bid and to get it to this final point.

“We are going to Fifa and a lot of delegates because we need to tell those people about why we feel it is the right thing for us to get the World Cup.

“I feel that at the end of the day it is down to what the bid team have done. England have a history and tradition (in football) and it is about the benefits that can be generated by having the World Cup in England.

“Obviously it is something that people have worked hard for and quite a long time for, and now it is up to the next few days.

“We are confident that we have put in the best bid that we can do.”

Beckham expects to take part in a few events and meet people ahead of the decision, but he added: “But it is just the importance of us being there and the team being there.

“It is very important now to just stay positive and just hope for the best because really we have put the best bid in that we can do.

“The point that we have always hammered home is that we have always believed we can put on the best World Cup and that we can work as a team.

“We always believe the best about England and football but we are not over-confident.

“We believe we can host the World Cup best but we just need to let everybody know that we are ready for it. It is important for many generations of people, not just in our country but all over the world.”