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The commercial strength of English football makes England a “low-risk option” to host the 2018 World Cup, it has been claimed.

England 2018 board member Paul Elliott told the Global Sports Forum in Barcelona that a successful tournament in eight years’ time would have massive implications for the development of the game around the world.

Former Chelsea captain Elliott was part of a panel that discussed ‘Major sporting Events: From Bid to Legacy’.

He said: "The important thing in establishing a lasting legacy is to first ensure the event itself is a success. We believe England's bid is a low-risk option because of the commercial strength of its marketplace and because the infrastructure is already in place.

"With that platform and a committed and focused approach, it's possible to focus on a sustainable legacy programme that benefits the world for many years afterwards – and that's what we're setting out to do."

Also on the panel was Philip Beard, the former marketing and sponsorship director for London 2012, Bernard Lapasset, president of the International Rugby Board; Andisa Ntsubane, senior sponsorship manager for Standard Bank; and Pere Alcober from Barcelona City Council.

Elliott, who is chairman of the England 2018 Inclusivity Advisory Group, added: "There's already a great deal of work being done by English football with community and international programmes across the country and across the world.

“Our aim is to build on that progress and host a World Cup tournament that can use its own success and the experience England has to promote a sustainable global legacy for future generations.

"The FA's international development programme has been working on football, educational and social projects for 10 years and the first phase of the Premier League's ‘Premier Skills’ project has delivered 22 projects across 15 countries.

“We're aiming to harness that experience and the commercial strength we can offer to provide a world-class legacy proposal within our submission to Fifa."