June 27 – New Zealand is the latest country to pull out of the running to host the 2019 Women’s World Cup, a blow to the Oceania region, the smallest of FIFA’s six confederations.
After lodging an expression of interest in May to host the four-yearly tournament, New Zealand Football announced it will not place an official bid.
Chief executive Andy Martin said NZF had completed a financial feasibility study into the impact of hosting the event and deemed 2019 would be too early to do so. The country is already hosting the men’s under-20 World Cup next year.
“We remain keen to consider hosting the women’s World Cup in the future while we continue our significant investment in the development of the women’s game at both grassroots and elite levels,” he said.
England also pulled out of the bidding process this week, leaving three countries in contention – France, South Korea and South Africa.
The next edition of the premier Women’s event takes place in Canada next year.
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