With Lincoln Financial Field one of 45 finalist venues that the U.S. Soccer Federation presented to FIFA - soccer's international governing body - in hopes of bringing the World Cup back to the United States in 2018 or 2022, many eyes are focused on just how strong of a fan output the Gold Cup will receive.

"I think that if you have a good turnout at the games on Saturday, you have a better chance of convincing the people at the U.S. Soccer Federation to put more games here," said Chuck Blazer, CONCACAF's general secretary.

Lincoln Financial Field has a history when it comes to soccer. The Linc opened its doors back in 2003 with a friendly between European giants Manchester United and FC Barcelona. The FIFA women's World Cup held some of its matches there in 2003 and the U.S. women's team has played at the Linc on numerous occasions, most recently during the "Gold Medal Tour" last summer after capturing Olympic gold in Beijing.

In June, the U.S. Soccer Federation issued requests for proposals to select cities that qualified as potential hosts for World Cup matches. The questionnaire sought details on how each city would fare in terms of transportation, tourism, security and even climate. And as Eagles chief financial officer Don Smolenski explained in a phone interview yesterday, both the Linc and the city scored an A-plus.

"We are a world-class facility in a world-class city," Smolenski said. "Our facilities are natural grass, and demographically we are located close to hotels, public transportation and the city. Philadelphia is a strong soccer region, everything is already in place [at the Linc] to be a perfect location for soccer."

Despite the Linc's dimensions - a yard or 2 shy widthwise - according to Smolenski, getting FIFA to sanction the venue has never been a concern in the past. In addition, the natural grass turf makes it a perfect setting for world-class match play.

Should the United States win its bid to host in either 2018 or 2022, many, such as U.S. coach Bob Bradley, are confident that with the popularity of the sport growing in the region, it's only a matter of time before FIFA finds Philadelphia a solid fit.

"I would expect that Philadelphia will continue to play a big role [in getting the World Cup here]," said Bradley. "Again, it has all the necessary factors, it has great stadiums, and I think the addition now of the Philadelphia Union to the MLS only helps legitimize Philadelphia as a soccer hotbed."

Football meets Futbol

Akers donned a pair of goalkeeper gloves, a U.S. soccer practice shirt and soccer cleats, and stretched every bit of his 5-10, 200-pound frame to make diving stops against the likes of U.S. players Brian Ching and Santino Quaranta, who sported an Akers jersey.

"I'm obviously not as accurate, but what a blast to come out here with the national team," Akers told reporters. "Kicking a ball is one thing I am used to doing . . . but I am trying to kick it over the goal."

Akers, who played soccer for 13 years, was a goalkeeper and left wing midfielder in high school but claims that by the time his senior year of high school came around, football took precedence. "I didn't play my senior year; I didn't even try," said Akers. "Football became the better opportunity at that point."

Still, Akers understands the game and likened the sport to auto racing with how much you have to know to truly appreciate what you're seeing.

"Yeah, race cars go 400 laps and just keep turning left."

But if you know the intricacies of gears and strategy?

"You start to appreciate it," Akers said. "The same thing is true here [with soccer] once you get that understanding down. That's why it's the world's most popular game."

Ticket sales on the rise

Marisabel Muñoz, director of international communications for Soccer United Marketing said: "This is consistent with sales at other venues through the Gold Cup, and we expect it to pick up even more as teams train in-market and as we approach game day."

Lincoln Financial Field seats approximately 67,600, so it's safe to say that tickets are still available by contacting Ticketmaster or logging on to goldcup.org. *

Daily News sports staffer Matt Day contributed to this report.

To see video of David Akers teaching the U.S. team how to kick field goals, go to: go.philly.com/pretzel.