*As part of an official FIFA process to be considered to host a World Cup, bidding nations must submit a bid book, which can be studied by both FIFA and federations across the world, who in turn judge its merits and decide who to vote for.*
*The so-called ‘United’ bid, which brought the American, Canadian and Mexican bids together under one umbrella, was published by FIFA in March 2018.*
*The bid book’s pricing leaned on the high side because the United bid was seeking to persuade FIFA and its member associations across the world that the World Cup in North America would return plenty of money into the global soccer ecosystem.*
*Yet even the projections made by the United bid do not come close to the prices unveiled by FIFA after the World Cup draw last weekend.*