Russia will host 2018 FIFA World Cup at highest level: Mutko

Russia will host the 2018 FIFA World Cup at the highest level, Vitaly Mutko, Deputy Prime Minister for Sports, Tourism and Youth Policy, and head of the "Russia-2018" Organising Committee, said on Saturday.

According to public voting results announced overnight to Saturday, and wolf named Zabivaka was chosen as the mascot of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, reports Tass.

"The World Cup will involve almost half of the country. Eleven cities will host matches, and twenty cities in total be involved. A lot of infrastructure is being built. Such a project cannot be prepared without any problems, but everything is resolvable. We will hold the championship at the highest level," Mutko said.

The head of the Russian Football Union (RFU) also noted that the country will see in the spring a prototype of a national team that will perform at the upcoming World Cup.

"It is too early to ask for a result, the team is being assembled. In the spring, we will see the prototype of a team that will perform in 2018. Precisely for this, we are now holding matches with high-level rivals, and planning to train in December," he noted.

"We are holding talks on friendly marches with Brazil, Argentina, and we are confident that we will reach agreement, because everyone wants to play with us."

The 2018 FIFA World Cup will take place from June 14 to July 15 in 2018 at 12 stadiums in 11 Russian cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Yekaterinburg, Samara, Sochi, and Rostov-on-Don.

--IANS

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