Coventry, who dumped Man Utd out in the last round, host West Ham tonight in the Carling Cup. Click here for the latest betting!

Australia are set to bid to host the 2018 World Cup following FIFA’s decision to scrap its rotation policy.

Football Federation Australia (FFA) chief executive Ben Buckley said Australia was “very serious” about bidding for the 2018 World Cup now that it was eligible.

“We flagged our intention to bid for the World Cup at the earliest possible opportunity and we are delighted that the FIFA executive committee has decided to abandon the rotation policy,” Buckley said.

“That will give us the opportunity to bid for and hopefully be successful in securing the right to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

“So whilst we will be competing with European-based nations and nations from all over the world, we think this will be a better system and a better opportunity for us.”

FIFA president Sepp Blatter said a final decision on the hosting of the 2018 event would likely be taken in 2011.

Coventry, who dumped Man Utd out in the last round, host West Ham tonight in the Carling Cup. Click here for the latest betting!