By Samindra Kunti
March 11 – Bidders Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany (BNG) promise to stage the most compact Women’s World Cup yet in 2027, offering fans the opportunity to attend two matches a day.
“Sustainability is very important,” Belgian FA president Pascal Van Damme (pictured) told Insideworldfootball. “With an as small as possible carbon footprint.”
In their bid book, the triumvirate of Western European countries has proposed 13 venues in a radius of 300 kilometres with the KRC Genk Arena (20,040) and the Westfalen Stadium (66,091) as the smallest and biggest grounds respectively.
“You fly in and fly out once,” explains Van Damme. “You are very closely connected. In three hours you are from one venue to the next. You can almost go by bike. You can visit everything.”
Except for the 1991 Women’s World Cup when China staged all matches in and near Guangzhou, BNG is pitching the most compact and climate-friendly global finals yet – one that would see minimal travel times, a central role for public transport and the possibility for supporters to watch two matches a day, following in the footsteps of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
In the race for the 2027 Women’s World Cup, the European triumvirate is up against a joint bid by the United States and Mexico and a bid from Brazil. The American bid has remained largely invisible, while Brazil suffered from a governance crisis at the Confederation of Brazilian Football (CBF) but received strong governmental backing. Last month, FIFA conducted on-site inspections.
BNG has been lobbying other federations, focusing on Africa and Asia, to convince those who will vote on May 17 at the FIFA Congress in Bangkok that Belgium, Netherlands and Germany merit to host the 2027 tournament. As the European bid, they expect strong European support.
In December, BNG was present on the sidelines of the FIFA Club World Cup in Jeddah where the bid engaged among others with FIFA president Gianni…
Source link : https://www.insideworldfootball.com/2024/03/11/bng-world-cup-2027-bid-puts-emphasis-sustainability-inclusion/
Author : Paul Nicholson
Publish date : 2024-03-11 15:10:10
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