VANCOUVER — The overwhelming success of the FIFA 2015 Women’s World Cup in Canada should lead to the country getting at least one, and possibly two, franchises in the U.S.-based women’s pro league in the next couple of years, Canada Soccer said Thursday.

On the day the association revealed better-than-anticipated financial impact numbers, president Victor Montagliani also said that bidding on a men’s World Cup “is a natural progression.”

“There’s a few changes going on at FIFA,” he noted cryptically of the embattled world governing body. “So we need to see how those changes play out and what are the terms and conditions.”

The next two men’s World Cups are scheduled for Russia in 2018 and Qatar in 2022.

“The first crack to get (one) is 2026 and it’s kind of expected it should come to the CONCACAF region.

“Over the next year or two, it will sort of play itself out. All things being equal, I think we’d have a serious look at it. But we need to wait and see what the landscape’s like.”

Canada Soccer, citing a sport tourism economic assessment study, said the women’s World Cup, held between June 6 and July 15 in Vancouver, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Montreal and Moncton, and the FIFA 2014 U-20 Women’s World Cup, held in Edmonton, Toronto, Montreal and Moncton, “supported” $493.6 million in economic activity for the country. That number was well above the preliminary projection of $337 million made in February 2014.

The net economic activity was listed at $249M, with $97.6 million in tax revenues going to three levels of government.

Montagliani said the vast majority of that was from the 2015 event, which attracted $93 million in tourism spending.

There was no breakdown by province or city. Vancouver hosted nine games at BC Place Stadium, including the final, with several crowds in excess of 50,000.

Most of the players on Canada’s national team played their club soccer for one of the teams in the National Women’s Soccer League, the 10-team loop run by the U.S. Soccer Federation. Canada Soccer pays the salaries of the Canadian players.

“I think that league has an opportunity to actually sustain,” said Montagliani. “And the reason for that is you’ve seen (men’s) professional clubs investing (in teams in their cities) and federations from Canada, the U.S. and Mexico investing.

“And I think the next evolution is to look for a franchise or two from Canada to be part of that league in the next year or two.”

Since the World Cup, some Canadian players have signed contracts with European clubs.

“They’re getting very good experience … it’s a different dynamic there.

“You’re going to see more young players from our youth teams being involved at the NWSL level.

“And if we could get a professional team or two in Canada … I think that bodes well for our future national team program.”

The Vancouver Whitecaps, whose majority owner Greg Kerfoot was once a strong backer of a centralized national team in the city, have been lukewarm, however, to investing in a NWSL team.

Montagliani said the women’s World Cup was exposing significant numbers of boys and girls to soccer. The economic assessment study found that 33 per cent of nine-to-17-year-olds who watched the tournament, but had never played the game, said they would definitely/probably play next season.

gkingston@vancouversun.com