David Beckham remains confident of England 2018 bid chances
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Your support makes all the difference.David Beckham today gave a thumbs-up to England's chances of staging the 2018 World Cup.
He said he was "confident" but not taking it for granted that England could win this week's crunch vote in Zurich, as he visited the London 2012 Olympic Stadium for the first time.
Standing in the stadium was a "very proud" moment, not just because he was born in east London but also because he could tell it would be a "beautiful stadium" to play football in after 2012.
"I think that maybe my sons have got a better chance than me (of playing in the Olympic Stadium) considering my age but as a stadium it is somewhere I would love to play in because you can see the atmosphere here already is great and there is no one in it, " he said.
"This is the first time I have been in the stadium area and been able to see the development of the stadium. When you drive up to it - it has obviously got that awe about it.
"It is a very proud moment, not just for myself but also for East End people, to be able to see the makeover of the area."
Beckham played a key ambassadorial role in securing London for the Olympics in Singapore in 2005 and was involved in the Beijing 2008 closing ceremony as the Chinese capital passed the Olympic flame on to London.
After his brief stopover in Stratford, east London, Beckham is now off to try and see if he can help edge the 2018 World Cup bid to victory.
He said: "Hopefully I will make a difference. There are many people, like Prince William, who have been involved and working hard for the bid and to get it to this final point.
"We are going to FIFA and a lot of delegates because we need to tell those people about why we feel it is the right thing for us to get the World Cup.
"I feel that at the end of the day it is down to what the bid team have done. England have a history and tradition (in football) and it is about the benefits that can be generated by having the World Cup in England."
Seeing the World Cup being played in England, like having the 2012 Games staged on home turf, would be a dream come true, according to Beckham.
He said: "Obviously it is something that people have worked hard for and quite a long time for, and now it is up to the next few days.
"We are confident that we have put in the best bid that we can do."
A strong united front highlighting the wealth of support for the bid is to be shown.
Beckham expects to take part in a few events and meet people ahead of the decision, but he added: "But it is just the importance of us being there and the team being there.
"It is very important now to just stay positive and just hope for the best because really we have put the best bid in that we can do.
"The point that we have always hammered home is that we have always believed we can put on the best World Cup and that we can work as a team.
"We always believe the best about England and football but we are not over-confident.
"We believe we can host the World Cup best but we just need to let everybody know that we are ready for it. It is important for many generations of people, not just in our country but all over the world."
Beckham said he was not interested in getting involved in the politics or possible controversy surrounding the decision, including a Panorama programme to be aired tonight, adding: "I believe it will be a fair decision."
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