• US president has written directly to Fifa president Sepp Blatter • England are also hoping to host 2018 World Cup

Barack Obama has written to the Fifa president, Sepp Blatter, to signal his support for the United States' hosting of either the 2018 or 2022 World Cup. In the letter Obama also recalls his early ties to football during his time spent as a child in Indonesia.

"As a child, I played soccer on a dirt road in Jakarta, and the game brought the children of my neighbourhood together," the president wrote. "As a father, I saw that same spirit of unity alive on the fields and sidelines of my own daughters' soccer games in Chicago."

Obama has previously backed the 2016 Olympic bid of his home town Chicago, and his latest pitch is in an effort to bring the World Cup back to the USA, who previously staged the 1994 tournament. England are one of the other countries hoping to host the 2018 World Cup.

"Soccer is truly the world's sport, and the World Cup promotes camaraderie and friendly competition across the globe," Obama wrote. "That is why this bid is about much more than a game. It is about the United States of America inviting the world to gather all across our great country in celebration of our common hopes and dreams."

Fifa will make their decision for the 2018 and 2022 finals in December 2010.

"The support of the President, who is extraordinarily popular around the world, is a huge plus," US Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati told the New York Times.