Twenty-six American senators joined to urge FIFA to let the United States host the World Cup in 2018 or 2022, citing energized excitement for the sport 16 years after the country last hosted the event. The 1994 World Cup is generally considered the most successful in FIFA's history

"We can think of no better way to show America's enthusiasm for the sport than to again play gracious host to the world’s athletes and spectators in the coming years," the lawmakers wrote to FIFA chief Sepp Blatter.

"With memories of the successful World Cup in 1994, we hope to be given the opportunity to provide the coming generation with an event that is greater in scale and grander than any before," said the group, which comprised Democrats and Republicans.

The World Cup in South Africa has generated more interest among US audiences than ever before, with a record 19.4 million US television viewers watching the United States lose 2-1 to Ghana, according to ratings service Nielsen.

That figure beat out the 18.1 million viewers for the 1994 Italy-Brazil World Cup final.

The highly anticipated Round of 16 match-up between Mexico and Argentina delivered the highest viewership ever for Spanish-language network Univision, attracting over 9.3 million total viewers.

The match also exceeded the performance of all previous programs in the network’s history, regardless of genre, and is the single most watched telecast in the history of Spanish-language television in the United States.

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