Mexico, who hosted the event in 1970 and 1986, have expressed an interest in hosting the tournament again as have Japan, who staged it with South Korea in 2002,

 

Thhe tiny Arab state of Qatar has also indicated that it might bid, just as insidethegames predicted they would last month.

 

Doha is already bidding to host the 2016 Olympics and will find out next week whether they have made the short-list.

 

They three countries would join a field that already includes England, China, Spain and Portugal, Netherlands, Russia, Australia and the United States.

 

Sepp Blatter, the President of Fifa, revealed the list of potential candidates at the Fifa Congress in Sydney today.

 

He also confirmed insidethegames story of last week that Fifa is planning to award the 2018 and 2022 touranaments at the same time, probably in June 2011.

 

Blatter said: "We can offer two competitions, for eight years, and the economic result for sponsors, would be better.

 

"You would also have inside FIFA some relief.''

 

He said the naming of successive hosts would still observe the rule preventing consecutive World Cups being held on the same continent.

 

Blatter said: "The World Cup is the biggest sporting event in the world.

 

"For television audiences, the World Cup 2006 (in Germany) was four times higher than the Olympic Games in Athens (2004).''

 

"When the decision will be taken by the executive committee, nothing has changed, that the World Cup would not be played on the same continent twice in a row."

 

It is widely predicted that with 2010 tournament to be held in South Africa and the 2014 event in Brazil the 2018 World Cup will return to Europe.

 

That could leave the non-European bidders for that year pinning their hopes on staging the 2022 World Cup, a scenario that privately Australian officials have been planning for.

 

Blatter said: "We are now playing in South Africa and South America, and Australia is also in the Southern Hemisphere.

 

"So it is a logical approach that the World Cup 2018 would go back to another continent.

 

"Yes, it will perhaps be more preferable for Australia in 2022.''