World Cup
With A Year to Go, Russia’s World Cup Faces Challenges
The FIFA Confederations Cup is now over. Attention now shifts to the more glamorous and tasking competition, the lead single sport event in the world- The FIFA World Cup.
After years of controversy, Russian officials think their World Cup has weathered the storm.
AP reports that stadiums are either finished or nearing completion, and the Confederations Cup ran smoothly.
“The project is very big and there are some delays or operational questions, minor questions, but nothing critical,” Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko, who oversees World Cup preparations, said.
But with a year to go, some serious concerns remain around Russia’s 643.5-billion-ruble ($10.8 billion) World Cup dream.
Workers’ deaths and alleged rights abuses taint the new stadiums. Teams will live in far-flung, hard-to-secure locations. Many of the stadiums risk becoming white elephants.
Here is a look at some of the key issues:
STADIUMS
Russia is desperate to avoid what Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko calls “the Brazilian scenario” — the construction delays and organizational disarray which marred the start of the last World Cup in 2014.
That looks assured, with most of the 12 stadiums either complete or close to completion, though some have gone over budget.
But did Russia cut corners on workers’ rights to get them ready? A report this month by Human Rights Watch accused Russia of numerous abuses on pay and conditions, and notes at least 17 deaths during construction.
Evidence that North Korean workers — who are employed around the world in conditions often likened to slavery — worked on the St. Petersburg stadium has brought concern from FIFA.
LEGACY
Many of Russia’s 12 stadiums look certain to be rarely — if ever — full again after the World Cup.
Just five of the 11 host cities have top-flight football clubs. The Russian Premier League attracts average crowds of 11,500 — among the lowest for major European leagues — and it seems new stadiums may be a temporary attraction that don’t solve fan apathy in the long-term.
Premier League side Rubin Kazan got an initial attendance bump after moving into a 45,000-seat World Cup ground in 2014, but crowds have dropped almost 30 percent over the last two seasons to 9,750. One home game against FC Krasnodar in April attracted barely 3,000 fans.
Meanwhile, Mordovia Saransk averaged 2,400 fans at games this season as it was relegated to the third tier, but will inherit a 45,000-seat World Cup ground next year. Sochi won’t have a professional club at all in 2017-18.
In Kaliningrad and Yekaterinburg, legacy concerns led Russian organizers to slash the capacity of World Cup stadiums from the original 45,000 to 25,000, with 10,000 more temporary seats.
Only the St. Petersburg stadium — home to games at the 2020 European Championship — and Moscow’s two grounds seem likely to be regularly in demand.
TEAM BASES
It’s not just about the host cities. The 32 teams taking part will be scattered across the country in newly built training bases as the Russian government tries to give other regions a taste of World Cup legacy — and lavish state spending.
Some locations in less glamorous areas of Russia are a hard sell for foreign teams, even if the accommodation is luxurious.
There’s Dzherzhinsk, an industrial city plagued by pollution from chemical plants, or Grozny, the capital of Chechnya, which was ravaged by war in the 1990s and early 2000s. Any team there will live with heavily armed guards. Many bases are in remote locations requiring air travel to even the nearest host city.
Small wonder that teams are expected to prioritize locations near the resort city of Sochi. Moscow’s heavy traffic is also a concern.
Still, team training bases may prove more useful for long-term legacy than the stadiums, since many include renovations of municipal football grounds.
FAN EXPERIENCE
Foreign fans at the Confederations Cup have largely seemed happy with Russian hospitality.
Tournament volunteers, police and paramedics have all had English classes to help foreigners in need, and free travel between host cities is on offer for ticket-holders.
Still, the real test is yet to come. The World Cup will bring many more foreign fans, posing a challenge for provincial transport links unused to such crowds.
Russia fans have little to be excited about, too, after their team exited the Confederations Cup in the group stage.
SECURITY
Russian authorities take the threat of terrorism at the World Cup seriously, especially after a bombing on the St. Petersburg subway in April.
At the Confederations Cup, thousands of police have operated tight airport-style security around stadiums, with more on key transport links.
The World Cup is even tougher to secure, with stadiums and team bases scattered across Russia. In the last five years, the host city of Volgograd has been hit by bombings, while Pyatigorsk, Grozny and Astrakhan, home to training bases, have seen attacks on security forces.
There are also fears about football hooliganism after Russians fans fought English supporters in France at last year’s European Championship. The Russian hooligans had martial arts training and left several England fans badly hurt, including one in a coma.
Russian authorities have blacklisted 191 fans with criminal records, and hours before the Confederations Cup began, dozens more, including members of radical groups, were refused permission to attend the tournament.
FIFA READINESS
Soccer’s world governing body also has work to do.
FIFA has pioneered video reviews of key moments like penalty calls during the Confederations Cup, but faced criticism that players and fans inside stadiums aren’t kept in the loop.
During Chile’s game against Cameroon last week, players milled about in confusion during one key review, and some headed toward the changing rooms, apparently thinking the referee had signaled for half-time.
FIFA also needs to hammer out a TV broadcast deal in Russia. Mutko has accused FIFA of charging so much that Russian networks would make a loss, and of trying to force the government to chip in.
A deal for the Confederations Cup was only reached six days before the tournament kicked off, avoiding the embarrassment of the host nation’s fans not being able to watch their team play.
AP Sports Writer Tales Azzoni in Kazan, Russia, contributed to this report.
Lionel Messi scored his 10th international hat-trick and had a hand in two more goals as Argentina thrashed Bolivia 6-0 in South American qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup in front of an adoring home crowd at the Monumental stadium on Tuesday.
Making only his second international appearance since recovering from an injury sustained at the Copa America in July, Messi capitalised on a mistake by defender Marcelo Suarez to open the scoring in the 19th minute.
Bolivia goalkeeper Guillermo Viscarra made a couple of fine saves to prevent the hosts from extending their lead but he was beaten in the 43rd minute when Lautaro Martinez scored from Messi’s quick cross.
Argentina made it 3-0 just before the break, with Messi setting up Julian Alvarez to score.
Lionel Scaloni’s side controlled the second half and looked like they had extended their lead through Nicolas Otamendi, only to see the goal disallowed for offside.
Substitute Thiago Almada did make it 4-0, however, scoring from Nahuel Molina’s pass in the 70th minute with the venue transformed into an Argentine party.
Messi, 37, gave fans more reason to celebrate in the closing moments, beating two Bolivia defenders before unleashing a fierce shot past Viscarra to score his second.
Messi needed only two more minutes to complete the hat-trick, joining Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo with the most in men’s internationals, the Argentine skipper scoring with a left-footed drive to take his tally to 112 goals for his country.
“It’s really nice to come here, to feel the affection of the people, it moves me how they shout my name,” Messi said.
“This drives me. Enjoying being happy where I am. Despite my age, when I’m here, I feel like a kid because I’m comfortable with this team. As long as I feel good and can keep performing the way I want, I’ll keep enjoying it.”
Argentina are top of the standings with 22 points, having returned to winning ways after losing to Colombia last month and drawing with Venezuela last week.
The 2026 World Cup will be hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.
-Reuters
Lacklustre Brazil pulled off a last-gasp 2-1 away victory over Chile in the South American World Cup qualifiers on Thursday, thanks to a goal by substitute Luiz Henrique in the 89th minute.
Off the back of a disappointing loss to Paraguay and losing four of their last five qualifiers with a series of poor performances, Brazil had to recover from a goal down as Eduardo Vargas put the locals in front with a fine header from a Felipe Loyola cross in the second minute.
Chile wasted chances to extend their lead, but Brazil managed to find the equaliser in added time before the break, when Savinho made a good run down the right and crossed to Igor Jesus who nodded a towering header past the goalkeeper, scoring on his first call-up for the national team.
Brazil controlled the second half and found a duly deserved winner late with a fine effort by Jesus’ teammate at Brazilian league leaders and Copa Libertadores semi-finalists Botafogo Luiz Henrique, who slotted a curling strike from the edge of the box to rescue the five-time World Cup champions three much needed points.
The victory lifted Brazil to fourth in the standings with 13 points, two behind Uruguay and eight from leaders Argentina. Chile are second from bottom on five points.
Earlier on Thursday, leaders Argentina were held to a 1-1 draw against Venezuela in Lionel Messi’s return to international duty from an injury.
The Argentine captain brilliantly assisted Nicolas Otamendi on a drenched pitch to open the scoring 13 minutes after kick-off, but a relentless Venezuela fought back to equalise with a Salomon Rondon’s header in the second half.
In-form Bolivia grabbed a gritty 1-0 win, their third successive victory, handing second-placed Colombia their first loss in the qualifiers.
Trying to end a 13-game winless run against their opponents, Bolivia started well but had to play most of the game with 10 men as Hector Cuellar was sent off with a straight red card for bringing striker Roger Martinez down as the last man in the 20th minute.
However, the fierce locals managed to find the winner in a stunning strike by Miguel Terceros, who dominated near the right touchline, cutting inside to beat two Colombian defenders before unleashing a fine left-footed strike that flew into the top-left corner in the 58th minute
Argentina are on top of the standings on 19 points, three ahead of Colombia and four from third-place Uruguay, who have a game in hand and will face last-placed Peru on Friday.
Brazil climbed to fourth, leapfrogging Ecuador, who are in fifth place on 12 points following a goalless draw against Paraguay.
Bolivia are behind Ecuador on goal difference in sixth, followed by Venezuela with a point behind in seventh. Only the top six are guaranteed a berth at the 2026 finals.
-Reuters
Argentina were held to a 1-1 draw against Venezuela on Thursday in Lionel Messi’s return to international duty in the South America’s World Cup qualifiers.
Captain Messi, 37, fully recovered from an injury sustained in the Copa America final against Colombia in July, was brilliant in setting up Otamendi on a drenched pitch to open the scoring 13 minutes after kick-off, which was delayed by half an hour due to heavy rain.
Argentina goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli, filling in for Emiliano ‘Dibu’ Martinez, who is serving a two-match ban for offensive behaviour, produced a fine performance to keep out Salomon Rondon’s first-half efforts.
However, the determined Venezuelan striker equalised in the second half with an exceptional header from a Yeferson Soteldo’s cross to temporarily move his team to sixth in the standings with 11 points.
Argentina sought a winner after boss Lionel Scaloni introduced Leandro Paredes and Lautaro Martinez five minutes from time, but the soggy pitch only increased the World Cup winners’ shortcomings.
“It was an ugly match. We couldn’t even make two passes in a row, the ball stopped because of the water on the pitch. It is difficult to play in these conditions, the pitch did not help,” Messi told TyC Sports after the game.
“The best conditions for us to play is that there is a good pitch, good weather, that the ball runs. We don’t ask for much, do we?” added defender Rodrigo De Paul.
Argentina remain top of the standings with 19 points and will face Bolivia on Tuesday, while Venezuela visit Paraguay.
-Reuters
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