Beckham to attend 2010 draw

David Beckham has revealed he will attend December's draw for next summer's finals in a bid to boost England's chances of being awarded the 2018 World Cup.

Beckham, who is expected to be named in Fabio Capello's final 23 for the 2010 finals, will continue his ambassadorial role for the 2018 tournament when the draw takes place on December 4.

England's bid to host the tournament was recently criticised by FIFA vice-president Jack Warner for being too low profile.

"Given the MLS season ends in November, I'll be in South Africa in December," confirmed Beckham. "If I can fly to different countries and help us have a chance of getting this then I'll do that. I was honoured to be involved in the Olympic bid and we were successful there and I was asked to be an ambassador of this one. So of course I accepted it and I'm serious about it."

Speaking about the 2018 bid, the Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder added: "Just because we are England, love the game and we're one of the biggest nations for the game, it doesn't mean we are taking this bid lightly. I think we're right because we are a nation that loves the game. The facilities around our country are exceptional. You look at the stadiums and they are second to none. If we were given the World Cup and it was held next week, we would be ready."