Yahoo – AFP,
28 Oct 2014
Moscow (AFP) - World football boss Sepp Blatter said Tuesday that FIFA categorically backs Russia's staging of the 2018 World Cup and praised its preparations.
Sepp Blatter, seen September 26, 2014 at the organistation's headquarters in Zurich, says FIFA "trusts" Russia and its government (AFP Photo/Sebastien Bozon) |
Moscow (AFP) - World football boss Sepp Blatter said Tuesday that FIFA categorically backs Russia's staging of the 2018 World Cup and praised its preparations.
"FIFA
unconditionally supports the staging of the World Cup by Russia," he told
the R-Sport news agency in comments translated into Russian.
Diplomatic
sources said last month that European nations were discussing a British-backed
plan to boycott President Vladimir Putin's showpiece staging of the World Cup
because of the conflict in eastern Ukraine.
"A
boycott will never give any positive effect," Blatter said, adding:
"We trust the country, its government."
"Russia
is the world's biggest country. You know, Russia is in the eye of the
international media. Football can not only unite Russia but show the whole
world that it is stronger that any protest movement," Blatter said.
He compared
the situation with Russia's hosting of the Winter Olympic games hosted by
Russia in the Black Sea resort of Sochi this year, when Western leaders stayed
away.
"There
was the same situation ahead of Sochi, but neither during nor after the games,
has there been a single word against these games."
Blatter
said that he was happy with Russia's progress in its preparations for hosting
the 2018 World Cup.
"I can
say that in comparison with Brazil, Russia is considerably ahead of schedule
with four years remaining before the event's start," Blatter said.
Blatter
came to Moscow to participate in a ceremony Tuesday evening to present the 2018
World Cup logo. The ceremony starting 11:30 pm Moscow time (2030 GMT) will be
televised and the new logo will be projected onto the facade of Moscow's
legendary Bolshoi Theatre.
The FIFA
boss added that the opening ceremony of the 2018 World Cup could take place a
day ahead of the tournament's opening match kick-off.
"It's
possible," he said.
"We
tried to do that at the 2006 World Cup in Germany but it didn't work well.
"But
I'm confident that in 2018 the ceremony should go off earlier. There are three
stadiums in Moscow where we can hold the event's opening ceremony."
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