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2018 FIFA World Cup Opening Ceremony held in Moscow - UPDATED

2018 FIFA World Cup Opening Ceremony held in Moscow - <span style="color: red;">UPDATED

14 June 2018 16:59 (UTC +04:00)

The 2018 FIFA World Cup Opening Ceremony has ended.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and FIFA President Gianni Infantino made speeches at the opening ceremony, an APA correspondent reported from Moscow.

Putin congratulated world’s football family on start of the main tournament of the planet: ‘Russia is hosting this tournament for the first time and we are very happy. This game is loved in Russia. We have responsibility to hold such tournament. We did our best for fans to feel better. Without any exaggeration, we can say that number of football fans is nearly 1 billion. Football strengthens the friendship among nations. I congratulate you on this football holiday’.

Gianni Infantino began his speech in Russian.

He thanked Russiain president for high-level organization.

Later, the tournament’s opening match between Russia and Saudi Arabia will take place.

***

18:40

The 2018 FIFA World Cup Opening Ceremony started at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko and other foreign leaders are attending the opening ceremony, an APA correspondent reported from Moscow.

British pop star Robbie Williams and Brazilian football icon Ronaldo are starring in the 2018 World Cup opening ceremony, alongside Russian soprano Aida Garifullina.

Later, the tournament’s opening match between Russia and Saudi Arabia will take place.

The FIFA World Cup, the first-ever hosted by Russia, will be held between June 14 and July 15, 2018, in 11 Russian cities - Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Yekaterinburg, Samara, Sochi and Rostov-on-Don.

Russia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Uruguay will make up Group A, while Group B will include Portugal, Spain, Iran and Morocco. Group C is going to consist of France, Australia, Peru and Denmark, while Group D will be Argentina, Iceland, Croatia and Nigeria. Group E will be composed of Brazil, Switzerland, Costa Rica and Serbia. Group F has Germany, Mexico, Sweden and South Korea, while Group G will encompass Belgium, Panama, Tunisia and England. Finally, Group H has Poland, Colombia, Senegal and Japan.