FIFA World Cup is one of the biggest sporting events on Earth. In the current format, 32 teams will compete after getting through the qualifying phase from their respective regions. Opening ceremony of FIFA World Cup will be held on June 14, 2018 in Moscow.
Approximately 3 Million ticket bookings were received by FIFA. This is a clear manifestation of the fan-following this sport has around the globe. It is highly admirable that FIFA has also reserved tickets for people with disabilities. All the available tickets have been sold out. To make it more convenient for the spectators, Russia has expedited the visa processing and will provide the spectators with Free Public Transport Service to commute between the stadiums and the city easier. Furthermore, elven Russian cities will be hosting the FIFA World Cup 2018 including Moscow, Saransk, Saint Petersburg, Samara, Nizhny Novgograd, Ekaterinburg, Kaliningrad, Kazan, Sochi and Rostov-on-Don.
I represented Pakistan in International Media Expedition Trip on the eve of FIFA World Cup 2018 in which 50 Young Bloggers & Social Media Influencers from all over the world were invited by Federal Agency for Youth Affairs Russia. The opening ceremony of the media expedition was held in Moscow on June 1, 2018 where the delegates were divided into different groups for the respective regions to visit.
I visited different regions of Russia with my group where the FIFA World Cup matches will be played during the next action-packed month. Our group visited Moscow, Saransk and St Petersburg. Furthermore, the delegation was accompanied by guides and a professional media team to cover the entire trip.
FIFA officials invited us at Mordovia Arena which is specially built for FIFA in Saransk, capital city of the Republic of Mordovia with a population of 340,000 people. Four FIFA matches will be played at the Mordovia Arena which can house 40,000 spectators. Afterwards, we headed towards St Petersburg. Subsequently, a visit was arranged to the Football Stadium of Saint Petersburg, which is built on the outskirts of the city with a capacity of 68,000 spectators. This stadium will also host four FIFA matches and all arrangements have already been made. In addition, a metro station is located right next to the stadium to make it easier for the spectators to commute between the city and the stadium.
During our visit, we had multiple sessions with FIFA officials and volunteers about the duties of the volunteers and spectators’ engagement plans in which we were told that most volunteers spoke multiple languages to guide and resolve the queries of the spectators.
I was invited by His Excellency Qazi Khalilullah, Ambassador of Pakistan to Russia at Embassy of Pakistan and he appreciated my services to promote our soft image in the international arena.
The closing ceremony was held on June 8, 2018 followed by a gala dinner. Afterwards, the certificates were distributed among the delegates.
The author is a Chairman Global Youth Clan, Social Entrepreneur & Business Graduate. Marketer by Profession , Activist by Passion & Journalist by occasions. He tweets @TahirKhattakk