U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati announced on Monday afternoon that the U.S. Soccer Federation has officially submitted a declaration of interest to host either the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups, and that David Downs will be the Executive Director of the USA Bid Committee. Downs, who will start immediately, previously served as President of Univision Sports from 2001-2009.
The entire bid process will span 16-months, with FIFA setting May 2010 as the deadline for countries to submit their final paperwork. FIFA's 24-man Executive Committee will then review each bid and name the two hosts for the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups in December 2010.
Gulati will serve as the Chair of the Bid Committee, with U.S. Soccer CEO Dan Flynn, MLS Commissioner Don Garber and Phil Murphy, the former National Finance Chair of the Democratic National Committee, as the other initial members of the Committee. Other members of the USA Bid Committee will be announced in the near future.
"I'm pleased to announce we have submitted our interest to FIFA to host either the 2018 or 2022 World Cups," said Gulati. "The World Cup is the greatest sporting event in the world, and to have the opportunity to host it once again is an honor, but also an incredible challenge. We are confident we can put together a successful bid to host another impressive event, and invite fans from around the world to enjoy the world's game in our country."
Downs enters into his new position after serving more than 30 years in the broadcast industry as an executive with both ABC and Univision Communications, Inc. During his time at both networks, Downs participated in successful negotiations with international governing body FIFA to acquire the U.S. television rights to every World Cup beginning with USA '94, including the 2010 and 2014 tournaments.
Since 2001, Downs was President of Univision Sports at Univision Communications Inc., the fifth largest television network in the United States and by far the country's leading Spanish-language television broadcast company.
"It is a privilege to be named Executive Director and have the opportunity to be part of the country's bid to bring the World Cup back to the United States," said Downs. "I believe the sport will continue its incredible growth in this country and I know that the U.S. can host yet another first class World Cup tournament. It's a formidable challenge, but I'm looking forward to dedicating the next two years to the pursuit of that goal."
As the President of Univision Sports, Downs was instrumental in acquiring and developing sports programming for three networks - Univision, TeleFutura and Galavision. Overall, Univision televises between 300-400 live soccer matches each year across the three networks, including U.S. National Team, CONCACAF Gold Cup, Major League Soccer, SuperLiga, Mexican Primera Division and CONCACAF Champions League.
"Through his involvement in the sport, David has demonstrated he is the right person for the position of Executive Director," said Gulati. "With his extensive understanding and knowledge of the game, he will be a key member of our team to help the U.S. present a strong bid for the World Cup."
Moving forward there will be numerous components that will go into FIFA's decision process for the two selections, but the only initial requirements for making a formal bid were for a country to have 12 stadiums with minimum capacities of between 40,000 for group matches, and 80,000 for the opening match and final. In addition, the very highest standards of TV broadcasting, information and telecommunications technology, transport and accommodation are an absolute must.
In 1994, the U.S. hosted the FIFA World Cup for the first time and silenced a world of doubters on how the sport would be received in the United States. World Cup USA 1994 was the most successful event in FIFA history, demonstrating the United States' ability to stage major international events, and Americans' ability to embrace the world's most popular sport.
The cumulative attendance of 3,587,538 broke the previous record by more than one million, and the average attendance for the 52-game tournament of 68,911 also established a new mark. On July 17, 1994, Brazil and Italy disputed the FIFA World Cup title in front of 94,194 fans at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. Overall, U.S. stadiums were filled to 96 percent capacity during the World Cup.
World Cup USA 1994 also left behind a legacy for soccer in the U.S. A surplus of approximately $50 million - more than double original projections - was contributed to the U.S. Soccer Foundation, the U.S. Soccer organization created to administer the World Cup surplus. The charitable arm of U.S. Soccer, the U.S. Soccer Foundation has taken a leading role in supporting the continuous development of the sport at all levels, helping develop coaches, players and referees, especially those in economically disadvantaged urban areas.
David Downs
USA Bid Committee Executive Director
David Downs has been at the forefront of televised soccer in the United States, serving more than 30 years in the broadcast industry as an executive with both ABC and Univision Communications Inc. During his time at both networks, Downs participated in successful negotiations with international governing body FIFA to acquire the U.S. television rights to every FIFA World Cup beginning with USA '94, including the 2010 and 2014 tournaments.
Since 2001, Downs has served as the President of Univision Sports at Univision Communications Inc., the fifth largest television network in the United States and by far the country's leading Spanish-language television broadcast company.
In his role, he was instrumental in providing and developing winning sports programming for three networks - Univision, TeleFutura and Galavision. Overall, Univision televises between 300-400 live soccer matches each year across the three networks, including U.S. National Team, CONCACAF Gold Cup, Major League Soccer, SuperLiga, Mexican Primera Division and CONCACAF Champions League.
Downs oversaw Univision's coverage of the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan and 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany, which earned an estimated 50 million viewers - including 29 million Hispanics and 21 million non-Hispanics - their highest ratings ever for a World Cup. Univision's average audience during the 2006 World Cup was higher than English language telecasts across key demographics (adults 18-49, 25-49 and 25-54). The final between Italy and France in 2006 far out-delivered the finals in 2002 and 1998.
In addition to the FIFA World Cup, Downs secured the exclusive Spanish-language broadcast rights on behalf of Univision to other FIFA soccer events, including the 2003, 2007 and 2011 FIFA Women's World Cups, the FIFA Confederations Cup, and the FIFA Under-20 and Under-17 World Cups. He also played an instrumental role in obtaining the exclusive North American broadcast rights to Copa America, one of the world's most prestigious soccer events, for the 2001, 2004 and 2007 tournaments.
Along with solidifying Univision's position as the leader in soccer coverage in the United States, Downs was responsible for launching "Solo Boxeo," which quickly became the most popular boxing program on English or Spanish-language network television, and "Contacto Deportivo," a nightly sports newscast on the TeleFutura Network.
Prior to his role at Univision, Downs worked at ABC Television Network for 21 years. Starting in 1978 as the researcher for ABC Sports' coverage of the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympics, Downs steadily moved up the ranks at ABC Sports to lead that department's programming planning and rights acquisition area for a decade. Downs also served as Senior Vice President, Network Operations and Development, his last position at the network from 1998-99. In that position, he was responsible for managing and supervising day-to-day network operations as well as building new business.
During his rise at the network, Downs held the position as an Associate Producer on the planning unit for the Los Angeles Summer Olympic Games before moving into the programming area, where he eventually was named the Senior Vice President. During his time in the department, he brought ABC to its prominent position in soccer coverage among English-language networks by securing rights to the 1994 and 1998 FIFA World Cups, as well as Major League Soccer from 1996 to the present.
Born in Leiden, Netherlands, to a Dutch mother and an American father, Downs' family moved to the United States when he was a young child. He attended Amherst College, playing soccer for the Lord Jeffs, before graduating in 1977 with a bachelor's degree in history.
An avid soccer fan since he was a kid, he looked up to his grandfather who played for first division Dutch club HVV (Haagse Voetbal Vereniging) in the late 1910s-early 1920s. Downs attended his first professional match in the early 1970s when his uncle took him to an Arsenal match at Highbury, making him a fan of the Gunners for life.
Along with playing and watching the game, Downs has been involved in almost every level of U.S. youth soccer as a coach, referee and parent. He and his wife, Alexis, live in Westchester County, New York, and have two children, Ashley and Taylor.
