"We want to be good hosts again," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said during a visit to India.

The announcement by soccer's governing body came on the same day the men's 2014 World Cup was given to Brazil. Brazil, the only candidate, held the tournament in 1950.

In its final presentation, Germany listed 11 reasons why it should hold the tournament, but mainly sold itself as "the land of football." Canada's bid was based on its successful staging of the under-20 World Cup this summer, which set attendance records for Canadian sports events and FIFA under-20 tournaments.

"Women's football is a great development opportunity around the world," said Theo Zwanziger, president of the German soccer federation. "The ball finally is also there for the girls and the women."

The Germans have presented 12 cities to stage games, with the opener in Berlin and the final in Frankfurt.

Other cities are: Augsburg, Bielefeld, Bochum, Dresden, Essen, Leverkusen, Magdeburg, Moenchengladbach, Sinsheim and Wolfsburg, if FIFA raises the number of finalists to 24. If the number remains at 16 countries, some cities most likely will be dropped. The dates have not been set yet.

"Being able to play a World Cup at home is a unique experience," Germany coach Silvia Neid said. "We made a very good bid and it shows how professionally we take this World Cup."

Germany's presentation — less polished and more casual than Canada's — included a video showing the career highlights of Birgit Prinz, Germany's star forward. Twice FIFA's player of the year, Prinz is the German captain with nearly 170 caps and more than 100 goals.

The presentation also showed Germany midfielder Fatmire Bajramaj, who was forced to play soccer in secret when she was a girl in Kosovo because of her father's disapproval. She became part of the national team after moving to Germany.

The video showed Bajramaj in a black dress and heels, juggling the ball with her knees and head, and later performing those stunts in the national team uniform.

"We offer a stage for the world to be our guest," German minister for women and youth Ursula von der Leyen said.

Canada had showed "what football can be in a country where so far football was not the sport No. 1," FIFA president Sepp Blatter said after its presentation. "We appreciate what you've done and we have good hopes for you and what you can do in the future. But we are in a competition and in competition there is always a winner and a loser. So I wish you well."

Peter Montopoli, a senior official for the under-20 World Cup, said about 1.2 million spectators attended the 52-game tournament in Canada.

"It was a tremendous success in our country," Montopoli said. "This one tournament captivated our entire country. ... For 30 days soccer owned our country."