KALININGRAD: Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that the country’s 12 World Cup venues should be mainly used for soccer, and not transformed into concert halls or exhibition centres. Russia hosted the World Cup in 11 cities in June and July without any major security or discriminatory incidents, receiving praise from fans and global soccer governing body FIFA. The country’s efforts are now turning to ensure that the venues and infrastructure built for the month-long tournament do not fall into disuse. Speaking at a meeting of government and sports officials at the World Cup stadium in Kaliningrad, Putin said the government would financially support World Cup venues for another five years to ensure that they can operate independently by 2024. When Russia won the right to host the 2018 World Cup, Putin pledged that the stadiums built would become the homes to vibrant soccer clubs.
Out of the 12 stadiums used at the World Cup, only six were fully new and commissioned for the tournament, while others were renovated or being built anyway.
Published in Daily Times, July 21st 2018.
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