Council votes against FIFA U20 World Cup bid

Hamilton City Council will not pursue a bid to host games during the FIFA Under 20 World Cup in 2015.

At Council’s Ordinary Meeting at Western Community Centre, Councillors today voted 7-4 against submitting a bid to New Zealand Football to hold matches in the Tournament.

The bid Request for Proposal, sought by New Zealand Football, would have been the Council’s first major step toward the city’s involvement in the Tournament. New Zealand Football asked for Request for Proposals from 12 cities.

The Councillors who voted against submitting cited concerns about the $809,000 cost of hosting up to eight matches at Waikato Stadium, particularly given the financial challenges the Council currently faces, as well uncertainty over the economic benefit to the city the matches would bring.

A report tabled at today’s meeting noted risks in hosting matches, including a contractual agreement with FIFA which would have heavily favoured football’s governing body and allowed it to make unilateral changes after signing. The report also noted the possibility of increased costs stemming from FIFA’s technical specifications for match venues.

Lance Vervoort, Council’s Acting General Manager of Events and Economic Development, said Councillors had identified the expenditure on tournament matches as inappropriate given Council’s need to reduce operating expenditure and establish a sustainable financial position.

“Council is going through a very difficult period financially, and although there was general support for the Tournament, the majority of elected members felt the city is not in a position to afford pursuing the bid and hosting matches,” he said.