With just three days until the FIFA Women's World Cup kicks off, the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the FIFA Women's World Cup held a press conference in Shanghai. The meeting was attended by the Chairman of the FIFA Committee for Women's Football and the FIFA Women's World Cup China 2007 Worawi Makudi; the Executive General Secretary of the LOC, Xue Li; FIFA Director of Competitions Jim Brown; UNICEF Deputy Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific Richard Bridle; and Sun Wen, FIFA Ambassador for Women's Football Development.

Worawi Makudi, Chairman of the FIFA Committee for Women's Football and the FIFA Women's World Cup China 2007

China
By returning to China, the FIFA Women's World Cup is returning to its roots. As we are all aware, football in its earliest form originated here on Chinese soil. Since it was founded, FIFA has continually strived to promote women's football and the FIFA Women's World Cup has an important role to play in this ongoing effort.

Prizes
For the first time in the history of the event, FIFA will be awarding prize money to the competitors. The winning team will be awarded one million US dollars, the runners-up 800,000 USD, the third-placed team 650,000 USD, and the fourth-placed team 550,000 USD. Teams eliminated in the quarter-finals will be awarded 350,000 USD, while those eliminated in the second round will be awarded 250,000 USD. In all, a total of 6.4 million USD in prize money will be awarded.

Television coverage
This year's FIFA Women's World Cup will be the most watched in the history of the tournament. The competition will be broadcast to over 200 countries worldwide, which represents a 25 per cent increase on the 2003 edition.

Opening and closing ceremonies
Following careful deliberations, it has been decided that the opening and closing ceremonies will be held in a football-specific stadium (Shanghai Hongkou Football Stadium). By holding the opening and closing ceremonies in a football-specific stadium as opposed to a general-purpose sports stadium, it will be possible to showcase the appeal of football more effectively.

Achieving success at the FIFA Women's World Cup
Every team has the chance to become world champions. As for more specific details, I prefer not to make any predictions!

FIFA Women's FootballSymposium
As this year's competition draws to a close, we will be organising a special international women's football symposium.

Xue Li, Executive General Secretary of the China 2007 LOC

Ticket sales
Thus far, positive ticket sales have been reported. In addition to tickets already sold, most collective tickets on offer have already been reserved by organisations such as companies, schools and public bodies. Tickets for the opening ceremony are in very high demand: we estimate that 80 per cent of tickets for the ceremony have been sold so far. Once the tournament begins, an average of 25,000-30,000 spectators are expected to attend each match. Those attending games in Shanghai can expect a particularly exciting atmosphere.

The advantages of the host team
As regards the China women's football team, a number of advantages have created favourable conditions for the team's success, including the familiar climate, environment and public support. However, success in the tournament will ultimately depend on the extent of the China team's achievements will depend on the players scoring goals.

This year's competition will make a tremendous contribution towards developing and raising the profile of women's football in China. In the past we have worked very hard in this respect, for example by organising football activities in schools and communities. I hope that this year's FIFA Women's World Cup will inject new impetus and energy into the development of football in China.

The FIFA Women's World Cup and the Olympic Games
The FIFA Women's World Cup is an official tournament; the demands are high, as are the standards. In some respects, the standards of this event even exceed those of the Olympic Games. In fact, the FIFA Women's World Cup is a major sporting event in its own right. Next year Tianjin and Shanghai will also be hosting matches as part of the Olympic Football Tournament at Beijing 2008. In this sense, the FIFA Women's World Cup will serve as a trial run for the relevant preparations in the run-up to next year's Olympic Games.

The competition and environmental protection
Throughout its preparations for the tournament, the LOC has continually adhered to government regulations in upholding the principles of environmental protection. We have gone to great lengths to keep the pitches in excellent condition and guarantee their high quality, in addition to ensuring that the competing athletes are in top condition.

All of the training equipment and facilities that we have purchased have been approved by the relevant state departments. We will also be implementing a non-smoking policy inside every FIFA Women's World Cup stadium to ensure that spectators can enjoy the matches in a clean and pleasant environment.