The United States have announced the 18 host cities that could host matches if the country’s 2018 or 2022 bid is successful.

After an eight month selection process, the following cities were chosen:

Atlanta, San Diego, Phoenix, Dallas, Seattle, Denver, Tampa, Indianapolis, Baltimore, Nashville, Kansas City, Houston, Miami, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Washington DC, Boston and New York.

Between these 18 cities, 21 stadiums have been considered with Seattle, Dallas and Los Angeles proposing two different arenas. However, it is thought that the list will be trimmed to around 12 cities if the USA bid is successful.

However, the one major surprise of the selection process was the glaring omission of Chicago. The state’s Soldier Field ground, which hosted matches at the 1994 World Cup, was overlooked by the selection panel.

The other cities to be rejected were:

Charlotte, Cleveland, Detroit, Jacksonville, Oakland, Orlando, St. Louis and San Francisco.

Sunil Gulati, President of the USA Soccer Federation, said: ”The United States is equipped and ready to offer FIFA the opportunity to host a passionate and successful World Cup where fans, teams, partners and media can experience the beautiful game at its highest level while allowing the world soccer family to focus on the utmost mission of the game that benefits the world as a whole.”