Soccer officials from the United States, Mexico and Canada say they are unconcerned with potential anti-American feeling as they began their final push to host the 2026 World Cup.
World governing body FIFA is due to choose between the group's three-way United2026 bid and one from Morocco at a congress in Moscow on June 13.
The countries' three presidents said theirs was a technically sound, low-risk bid that featured state-of-the-art facilities, operational certainty and the promise of riches to fill FIFA's coffers.
But they shrugged off fears of anti-US sentiment stemming from a probe in which US prosecutors have brought corruption charges against 42 people and entities and described a culture of corruption around the awarding of media and marketing rights to soccer games.
The bid may also have to contend with irritation in several African and Middle Eastern countries at US President Donald Trump's immigration policies.
"This is not geopolitics," US Soccer president Carlos Cordeiro told a media the call from Kuala Lumpur to publicise their bid more widely.
"Our vision is a very simple one. We offer FIFA an unprecedented united opportunity to stage the 2026 World Cup. We believe strongly that this decision will be made on its merits."
Chicago was widely seen to have the best technical bid in the race to stage the 2016 Summer Olympics, but was eliminated in the first round of voting - the victim of anti-American sentiment and disputes with the International Olympic Committee.
But United2026 officials said they sensed no reluctance by delegates to award a World Cup to a country where they might be subject to subpoenas and wire taps by US legal authorities.
