BRUSSELS, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Dutch football legend Ruud Gullit has been named president of the Belgian-Dutch World Cup bid committee.
Gullit will use his knowledge and background in football to help Belgium and the Netherlands to bid for either 2018 or 2022 World Cup, local media reported Tuesday.
It was reported that a deal for Europe to host the 2018 World Cup is being negotiated. The Belgian-Dutch bid will compete against Russia, England and another joint bid from Spain and Portugal.
Australia, Japan and the United States are also bidding for either 2018 or 2022, while South Korea, Indonesia and Qatar are in the running to host the 2022 tournament only.
The decision on who will stage both the 2018 and 2022 finals will be taken by the FIF executive committee in Zurich in December.
Gullit led the Netherlands to the 1988 European Championships and won the world player of the year in 1987 and 1989.
