Atlanta United have made a World Cup ... bid committee. Well, their Technical Director has at least. The news was announced Friday that United States men’s national team legend and current Five Stripes TD, Carlos Bocanegra, has been added to the Board of Directors for CONCACAF’s joint World Cup bid committee bidding for the 2026 World Cup.
NEWS: @BocaBoca3 joins Board of Directors for 2026 World Cup United Bid Committee
— Atlanta United FC (@ATLUTD) August 4, 2017
DETAILS: https://t.co/CXcYtwELD5 pic.twitter.com/QWptId90jE
The USA, Canada and Mexico have joined forces in hopes of bringing the World Cup back to North America. Along with Bocanegra’s addition, USWNT legend Julie Foudy and U.S. Soccer Foundation President and CEO, Ed Foster-Simeon, have all been added.
The other members of the Board of Directors are Sunil Gulati (Chairman), Steven Reed (Canada), Peter Montopoli (Canada), Decio De Maria (Mexico), Guillermo Cantu (Mexico), Carlos Cordeiro (USA), Donna Shalala (USA), Dan Flynn (USA), Don Garber (USA) and Victor Montagliani (CONCACAF).
So, what does this mean exactly? This committee is in charge of reaching out to prospective host cities to gauge their interest and capabilities for hosting. It’s the committee’s job to select the appropriate host sites to compile into the bid. The deadline to submit the bit to FIFA is March 2018.
Coincidentally, this news comes a week after the AJC reported that Atlanta had been contacted by the committee as a possible hosting city. So, does a member of Atlanta United’s technical staff being on the committee give Atlanta a better chance of being one of the cities selected? That’s impossible to know for us mere bystanders, but you have to assume that it can’t hurt, right?