On Wednesday, 17 November 2010, the city of Voronezh hosted the Russian national football team at its stadium for the first time. The Russian Football Union chose this city with a population of about 1 million people as the site for a friendly match against the Belgium national team. It was the final match for the national team this year.

When the national anthem started, local fans unrolled a huge banner with, "2018 - believe," signed by the "best fans in the world", at the Eastern tribune of the Central Trade Unions' stadium. This is just one example of how local football fans across Russia have supported the Russian Bid to host 2018 FIFA World Cup. Post-match tallies indicate that more than 35 thousand people watched the Russia-Belgium match.

The match ended with the victory for the visiting team and a final score of 2:0. However the Voronezh fans, along with all Russian fans, are confident that the great victories are still ahead.

The decision for the Host Countries for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups will be made on 2 December 2010 in Zurich, through a special vote by the FIFA Executive Committee.

 

For more information:

Russia Bid Committee for the 2018/2022 FIFA World Cup™

Julia Cooper, Communications Manager
Phone: +7 495 660 49 80
E-mail:

Andreas Herren, International Media Coordinator
Mobile: +41 (79) 799 0046
E-mail: