Look Sharp, Dallas. Because Next Week, the World Cup Site Selection Committee's Coming.

By Robert Wilonsky Fri., Sep. 3 2010 at 12:51 PM

Categories: City Hall, Sports

Chris Heinbaugh, Mayor Tom Leppert's chief of staff, sent hizzoner's weekly sked this morning, and it says that Wednesday night and Thursday morning (and, like, early Thursday morning) he's got a date with the FIFA World Cup Soccer Site Selection Committee. Remember: Dallas is among the 18 cities that made the cut in the United States' bid to get either the 2018 or 2022 Federation Internationale de Football Association's World Cup, and, as Mayor Tom reminded in May, "North Texas has some of the best soccer venues in the world and, as we saw in 1994, Fair Park is the ideal location for the International Broadcast Center."

The city -- OK, the region -- is hoping to sell FIFA on the Cotton Bowl and Cowboys Stadium, not to mention the Dallas Convention Center, site of the Thursday-morning visit, which is part of a long-scheduled "technical tour" of several U.S. cities set to kick off Monday in New York City. After FIFA officials leave Dallas they head straight to Houston -- where, says here, city officials "feel that the success of the MLS All-Star Game in July proved both to U.S. Soccer and the FIFA Delegation that Houston is a city ready for world-class soccer match-ups and would be an excellent host city for a future World Cup."

FIFA won't make a decision till December 2. So clean yourself up next week. Shave. Yes, you. Shower. Maybe put on one of these tees. Couldn't hurt. C'mon -- don't you remember how amazing it was in '94? Best. Summer. Ever.

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