U.S. World Cup bid cities unveiled Tuesday

The USA Bid Committee will announce its final list of World Cup venue cities next Tuesday, Jan. 12, and Atlanta is among the 27 cities vying to make the cut.

The committee has spent the last eight months touring cities and stadiums around the country as part of the U.S. Soccer Federation’s bid to to land the World Cup in either 2018 or 2022. The committee will choose 18 cities as part of a formal proposal to be submitted to FIFA in the spring. FIFA will select the host nations for both World Cups next December.

Live coverage of the event begins at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPNews.

Georgia Soccer and the Atlanta Sports Council have been spearheading the Atlanta bid, with the former raising $75,000 and generating a petition drive in a show of support that’s one of the major factors being considered by the USA Bid Committee.

A prominent American soccer blogger thinks the city should have no problem making the list:

“Atlanta, the other city in the top five, is a no brainer for any major sporting event after having so successfully hosted the 1996 Summer Olympics. With the Atlanta Silverbacks returning to the professional fold for the 2011 NASL season, the city is  a lock to host World Cup matches.”

Atlanta Sports Council president Gary Stokan said another component of the Atlanta proposal is having the city serve as the venue for the FIFA executive committee meeting that precedes the World Cup and includes the election of the FIFA president.

Here are some previous posts I’ve written on Atlanta’s interest in the World Cup.