The vice president of the world soccer governing body has praised South Korea on its preparations to host next year's under-17 youth soccer championship.

After a second inspection tour of Korean candidate cities, Jack Warner, who also heads the tournament's organizing committee, told a news conference in Seoul Tuesday that the inspection was "successful" and that he was even impressed by several of the stadiums.

The committee's secretary-general, who also joined the inspection, said candidate cities were trimmed to seven - Gwangyang, Cheonan, Changwon, Seogwipo, Seoul, Suwon and Ulsan. He said Suwon would be best for the opening ceremony and gave a nod to Goyang, a satellite city of Seoul, for the finals.

The 23-day tournament opens August 18th next year and will take place in six Korean cities.