A bid to be a category-three host - securing three pool matches and one round-16 match - would bring in an economic benefit of between $2.9 million and $3.5 million. The successful host could also expect about 9000 international visitors and 115 international media. But the council has learnt that other cities put forward bids without committing any money at this stage.
Waikato/Bay of Plenty Football Association chief executive Cameron Mitchell said the association's stakeholders and the business community have indicated support and there was potential for funding sources outside council including sponsorship.
"Hamilton's the fourth largest city in New Zealand and for it not to be involved in the third largest sporting event in 2015 would be a bit of a shame.
"Ultimately we are looking at letting the public and community decide if it is actually worthwhile. That's why some of the costs we can revisit and also look at other ways to skin the cat and investment required to host the tournament."
Accommodation and hospitality providers have also pledged their support to the bid as they stand to benefit - largely from bookings from teams and their crews.
However, the council may have missed its chance as the deadline for bids closed on November 30, 2011. Fifa Under 20 World Cup 2015 interim project manager Peter O'Hara said New Zealand Football was assessing the current bids that had met deadline and would have a better idea in February about whether they would meet their requirements.
"It's possible at some stage a city might or might not be able to enter the process. We were looking for between six and eight host cities and we certainly have sufficient numbers to cover that."
The association invited 12 cities including Hamilton, Whangarei and Dunedin to bid for hosting rights but would not confirm how many had accepted the offer. A shortlist of the successful applicants would be drawn up by March and the successful cities would be put forward for Fifa's approval by June.
