It's a pleasure to be one of the 18 finalist U.S. cities in the running, but it's up to us to make sure we make the final cut!
Prior to 2010, Philadelphia was home to the Kixx, who play in the National Indoor Soccer League. But in 2010, Philadelphia had plenty of reason to be excited: after a steady stream of support from local residents, more pro soccer came to Philadelphia.
This year, top-level men's and women's teams played their first games in Philadelphia. The Independence began play in the Women's Professional Soccer league, and the Philadelphia Union were introduced to MLS. The Union play their games at PPL Park - a new soccer-specific stadium recently built for the team.
The potential significance of hosting an event of this magnitude is massive -- a global television audience of billions, estimated economic impact for each host city of $300M-$500M, and an influx of international visitors.
As a core part of its efforts to demonstrate support within the United States, the US Bid Committee has created "The Game Is In US" campaign, and asked its finalist cities to take a lead role in promoting the effort. In the true essence of sports, this is a competition! We are competing against each of the other 17 finalists to demonstrate who has the most spirit and support for hosting the event.