Football's world governing body FIFA has paid China one million dollars as compensation for losing the 2003 women's football World Cup, a top FIFA official said on Friday.

Urs Linsi, the general secretary of FIFA, said the money was for salaries and organizing costs that China incurred as the original host of the World Cup.

"We rewarded them for their costs," said Linsi during a news conference here to kick off the 16-team, 32-match tournament that begins Saturday.

"China had hired staff and had expenses so we paid them."

China also was awarded the 2007 Women's World Cup.

The tournament was relocated from China to the United States because of the deadly outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).

SARS emerged in south China's Guangdong province in 2002 and quickly spread to become a global menace. SARS infected more than 8,000 people and left more than 900 dead in 32 countries, with 349 deaths and 5,327 of the infections being recorded in China.

Markus Siegler, FIFA's director of communications, said Friday they have no regrets about relocating the World Cup despite the diminished danger of SARS in China at the moment.

"No one knew at the time how SARS was going to develop," Siegler said.

Because of the relocation, organizers had only 128 days to get ready. Linsi said they were helped along by the fact the United States hosted the 1994 men's World Cup and 1999 Women's World Cup.

"Normally we need three years to plan these tournaments," said Linsi. "So to have a setup like this in 128 days is exceptional. But it was not easy."

Linsi said the biggest hurdles were finding venues and getting a match and television schedule that would satisfy football fans around the world.

They also had to arrange for visas for the North Korean team, which is making its first appearance in the Women's World Cup finals.

"It is not so easy for some people to get into the United States of America," Linsi said.

FIFA also had to defend the decision to move the final from the 90,000-seat Rose Bowl stadium, which hosted the US-China 1999 final, to a much smaller venue.

The October 12 final will take place in a new multi-purpose 30,000 seat Home Depot stadium in the south Los Angeles suburb of Carson.

"It is important for FIFA to have a real football stadium in the US. This is a reward for taking this step," said Linsi.

"If you have a sold out Rose Bowl you have a lot more revenue. But everything can't come down to money."

Dan Flynn, the US Soccer Association secretary general, said, "it didn't come down to money. It came down to how to grow the sport."