South Korea has been selected to host FIFA's 2007 U-17 World Soccer Championship.

In a vote held by FIFA's executive board in Zurich, Switzerland Tuesday, South Korea beat Iran in the bid to organize one of football's biggest competitions.

Following the soccer board's decision, the Korea Football Association announced plans to set up a preparatory committee for the event and make substantial preparations, including the selection of venue cities.

Meanwhile, this year's championship will be held in Chile from September 17. The South Korean team will not be playing in the 17-day event as it was eliminated one to zero in a qualifier against North Korea last September.

However, the South Korean team will automatically qualify for the 2007 event as the host nation.