On Friday 14 May, The HollandBelgium Bid officially presented its Bid Book to FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter, as will the eight other bidding countries. In the fringe of this, The Bid organised a number of high-profile events in the Swiss cities of Bern and Zürich.
The Bid Book of The HollandBelgium Bid, the Dutch-Belgian bid for the FIFA World CupTM in 2018 or 2022, is going on a unique tour of the twelve host cities before heading for football’s international governing body, FIFA, in Zurich. Ruud Gullit, President of The Bid, today announced that he will personally present the book to FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter on Friday 14 May.
On the 21st of September, The HollandBelgium Bid announced the names of ambassadors and commercial partners. This took place in the Philips Stadion, home of PSV Eindhoven, where also prime ministers Jan Peter Balkenende (NED) and Herman Van Rompuy (BEL) declared their support for the campaign through a video message.
"By hosting a FIFA World Cup™, Belgium and the Netherlands would be putting themselves on the international map. National consciousness would be given such a boost and it would be an opportunity for a new generation of Belgians and Dutch to show what society in 2018 is all about."
Ruud Gullit
President The HollandBelgium Bid "Together, Belgium and the Netherlands stand strong. I really believe that we will be awarded a World Cup on 2 December. We are going to work really hard to get there."