A delegation from the Football Association visited the city today to make a preliminary investigation of the city's facilities, including Pride Park, the home of Championship club Derby County.

Derby hopes its football tradition, transport links, the quality and position of Pride Park and its track record in hosting international games will make a powerful case.

If picked, it is estimated the Council estimate that the city could benefit from as much as £200 million investment over the next 10 years.

Marketing Derby director John Forkin said: "Derby can offer the right package to suit all visitors, providing them with a totally different experience."

Jonathan Guest, Derby City Council's director of regeneration and communities, said that Derby was determined to put on a good show should it secure a part in hosting the World Cup.

He said: "We had a lot of ambassadors from all areas of the city gather together to present Derby's case and they did a very good job.

"They were not only able to show how committed the city would be to hosting the World Cup if it came to Derby, but how impressive the area really is."

Derby County Football Club, the City and County councils, Marketing Derby, the University of Derby and the Derby Telegraph, were among the organisations which welcomed the FA delegates.

Rams legends Roy McFarland and Archie Gemmill also met the VIPs, along with brightly-dressed youngsters representing Derby City Council's b-active campaign.

The FA delegation started their day at the Quad arts centre, in the Market Place, where they listened to a series of presentations.

Each speech focused on different aspects, such as tourism, transport and Pride Park Stadium and how they could meet World Cup standards.

The VIPs were then invited to watch the celebrations in the Market Place, before being split into groups and taken on a tour of the city.

Gemmill, scorer of one of the greatest ever World Cup goals for Scotland against Holland in Argentina at the 1978 World Cup, believes the city stands a good chance of hosting matches during the tournament.

He said: "During the presentations, the speakers made such positive points about Derby and their cases were exceptionally good.

"If the rest of the campaign continues in this way, then the city has a real chance of achieving its goal.

"Derby has a lot going for it as a city as well. Its football club has the 12th best attendance in the country, which speaks volumes, and Pride Park Stadium is fantastic.

"On top of that, the parks are very nice and could easily hold World Cup carnivals and the football training facilities in the area are second to none."

Pride Park, which was opened in 1997, has a capacity of 33,597 and has hosted one international, in 2001 when England beat 4-0 in a friendly there.

Derby is one of 15 cities and towns across England bidding to host matches and one of three from the East Midlands, alongside Leicester and Nottingham.

Former Derby County captain and England international Roy McFarland said he also thought the presentations had gone extremely well.

He said: "The morning presentations were great.

"They were very compact, direct and hit all the right spots.

"The FA also did a small presentation to outline what they want from their host cities, which is the right facilities, like hotels, but they also want to know how people in that city feel about it.

"That's appropriate because I think people in Derby and Derbyshire would want the World Cup to come to their area.

"It's a very friendly, welcoming place and, hopefully, we've sold that very important aspect of the area to the FA."

Derby County President and chief executive Tom Glick said he was optimistic about how the launch day went.

He said: "From both an optimistic and objective point of view, I'm convinced the FA will have gone away with a positive impression.

"The Quad was a great place to hold presentations, the activities in the Market Place were terrific and all of it emphasised the legacy the World Cup would bring to Derby and England."