Cincinnati might be at the center of the sporting world this fall, if a proposal to host part of the Women's World Cup soccer event is accepted.

The U.S. Soccer Federation, which selects the sites, says the Queen City is one of 12 to 15 cities in the country vying for four to seven locations on the schedule.

Kudos to the Bengals and the Hamilton County Commissioners for giving this international phenomenon a shot.

Even if it is a long shot. In 1999, eight American cities hosted games. Only one - Chicago - isn't on the West or East Coast, and all of them are much larger cities than Cincinnati.

But there are reasons to be optimistic. Cincinnati has an almost brand-new football stadium that's "soccer-ready" and an infrastructure plenty capable of handling a major sporting event.

Perhaps the biggest advantage Cincinnati has is the short time frame, caused by the event's sudden, SARS-induced pull-out from China.

Normally the process of planning a World Cup goes on for years.But the tournament starts in three months, and cities have to be quick and efficient to snare a site. Cincinnati is proving to be just that. The group that put the bid together, led by former Hamilton County Commissioner Bob Bedinghaus of the Bengals, organized a proposal in less than a week.

Cincinnati would be a natural for one of the federation's goals, to expand into markets not familiar with the national teams.

If the bid were accepted, soccer teams from four countries, towing their supporters from all over the world, would come to the city and pump millions of dollars into the area's economy.

Columbus has made a bid for games, too. And Columbus, home of a popular men's professional soccer team, has to be considered a good contender.

An Interstate 71 Women's World Cup? A good idea, both for sports fans and for the city.