Cape Town - David Beckham, Luis Figo and Ruud Gullit were on hand as the 12 countries vying for the 2018 or 2022
World Cup presented their bids on Friday. With the international footballing family having converged on Cape Town for the group draw for the 2010 World Cup finals set for later in the day, the World Cup hopefuls used the opportunity to showcase their bids.
Amongst the guests at the Media Expo in Cape Town were the former World Footballers Gullit and Figo, as well as England's Beckham and his national team coach Fabio Capello.
Held in the residence of the Western Cape Premier Helen Zille, the politician welcomed the journalists and guests.
"We have seen what the World Cup really means to the world. It has allowed South Africa to focus collectively on one goal and towards the future. We have worked towards one common purpose and it has helped a lot towards nation building," Zille said.
"You have seen our beautiful stadiums and the infrastructure and you have seen that we can host the World Cup."
She wished all the bidding countries well, saying: "We have learnt a lot from Germany 2006 and we would
love to teach you a lot."
Each of the 10 bids was then given an opportunity to show their bid in a short
video presentation, with Spain and Portugal, who are hoping to co-host the event, starting off.
They were followed by Australia, Qatar, the
Netherlands and Belgium, who are also putting forward a joint bid, and South Korea. The other countries bidding for the finals are Russia, Japan, Indonesia, the United States and England.
The strongest presentation was arguably done by
Hollywood star Nicole Kidman, who spoke for the Australian bid and said that the World Cup on the continent would be a "no worries World Cup."
She promised sensational football in a sensational setting and said that it was the best choice for the beautiful game.
Gullit said that the Netherlands and Belgium had already shown that they can successfully co-host an event of the magnitude, having co-hosted the Euro 2000 tournament.
"We were founding members of football's controlling body FIFA, so we are due a World Cup. We are a small country but we have given the world and football a lot," the 1988 European champion Gullit said.
"I also think that the world appreciates the way style we play."
Former Portuguese international Luis Figo, who was a guest of the Portugal/Spain bid, said he hoped his country would get the go-ahead.
"Both these countries have a rich footballing tradition and have hosted the World Cup and the European Championships. They will do a fine job with the Wo
