Lagos — The hope of Bauchi hosting the 2009 World U-17 Football World Cup still hangs in the balance as all the facilities it requires to be one of the six centres to be chosen by FIFA for the championship are not up to standard.

Addressing sports writers after another round of pre-FIFA final inspection visit next month, the LOC for the championship declared that a lot in terms of upgrading and rehabilitating of facilities needs to be done by the state government if it hopes to get FIFA's final nod.

Represented by a group led by Shuaibu Mongadi, the LOC said that: "There are a lot of things to be done at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Stadium starting with the main turf which has to be replaced with an artificial one which is one of the requirements of FIFA for the championship. There are other things within the stadium complex that must be put in proper shape immediately."

He added that the Specialist Hospital needed to be brought up to FIFA standard as a referral centre while some specific equipment as pointed out by the FIFA medical team must be installed before the final nod can be given just as the hotels have to be immediately upgraded to the required standard within a short period of time if the hosting right will be granted to Bauchi.

Though Mongadi explained that FIFA is not expecting a 100 percent thing when its officials come next month, "it is expected that there would have been a tremendous improvement in terms of commitment by government from what was on the ground when last the team came for the inspection," he added.

He then reminded the Bauchi LOC that there will be two centres in the North and already three states, Bauchi, Kaduna and Kano have all indicated interest to be the centres saying that at the end of the day only the centres that are ready and committed will be picked FIFA after the final inspection next month, calling on the Bauchi State government and other sports loving individuals in the state to show a high level of commitment if the dream of being one of the hosting centres is to be realised.