Summary:
The World Cup could be arriving in India sooner than anyone expected.After successfully hosting the Fifa U-17 World Cup last year, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has suggested to Fifa that they are keen to host the next edition of the U-20 Women’s World Cup in 2020.“We are examining the possibility of bidding for the U-20 Women’s World Cup in 2020. India had six stadiums that hosted the U-17 World Cup in 2017 and do not need major investments to host another tournament at the youth level.Another reason for India’s push towards the U-20 Women’s World Cup is the country’ failed bid for the AFC Asian Cup 2023. If you look at the Fifa U-17 World Cup, it gave such a fillip for the game in the country, and we expect the (U-20) Women’s World Cup to do the same for women’s football,” said AIFF general secretary Kushal Das.India had in fact made a pitch for the U-20 World Cup (men’s) in 2019 but Fifa were in no mood to give India another World Cup within two years and instead handpicked Poland as hosts.The women’s U-20 World Cup, though, is a different ball game and there are indications Fifa won’t have the same reservations when they meet to decide the hosts.“Details on the bidding process will follow in due course,” a Fifa spokesperson told TOI.The 2018 edition of the U-20 Women’s World Cup will be played in France, which also hosts the Women’s World Cup next year.India’s push for big tournaments stems from the infrastructure that is already available. India had shown more than passing interest in hosting the biggest football tournament in Asia but South Korea and China are now left to battle for the continental showpiece.South Korea are almost certain to win the bid ahead of China whose interest in the tournament since bidding has been on the wane.“2023 (Asian Cup) is not possible,” confirmed Das.Meanwhile, Fifa has decided to persist with the existing structure of biennial U-17 and U-20 tournaments for both men and women, despite demands from some quarters that there was a need to do away with the under-17 and under-19 World Cup and have an annual, single age-group competition.“After discussing the pros and cons of adopting a different strategy for the future of international youth competitions, the Fifa Council decided to stick to the existing structure of biennial U-17 and U-20 tournaments for both men and women,” said Fifa..