November 20 – Russia’s sports minister Vitaly Mutko has said that the construction contract to build the 17 billion ruble ($365 million) stadium in Nizhniy Novgorod will be signed on November 25-26 with 50% of the payment being upfront.
By Paul Nicholson
November 18 – Russia’s first deputy prime minister Igor Shuvalov has said that the construction spend on stadia for the 2018 World Cup will remain fixed at 300 billion roubles ($6.4 billion) – the same figure that was set in 2010. Shuvalov made his remarks on a visit to Moscow’s recently complete Okritie-Arena, one of two venues in the capital that will host matches in 2018.
By Paul Nicholson
November 14 – Ray Whelan, the British director of FIFA’s World Cup marketing affiliate Match who was arrested at the World Cup in July, has in the last few days returned to the UK. Whelan was bailed in August from Brazil’s notorious Bangu prison but has only just received his passport.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 13 – Qatar is failing to make fast enough progress in dealing with the ill-treatment of migrant workers, Amnesty International has warned in a fresh report. Six months after the 2022 World Cup hosts laid down plans for major reforms, Amnesty says few concrete steps have been taken.
By Pail Nicholson
November 12 – As part of its 2018 World Cup planning the Russian emergencies ministry is setting up special task groups in FIFA World Cup host cities.
November 11 – Russia’s government has announced a further RUB 4 billion (£55 million) increase in budget for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The new funds are earmarked for infrastructure and utilities projects.
November 10 – Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC) has donated $500,000 to the Kakuma project in Kenya.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 7 – Angry European clubs claim their case for staging the 2022 World Cup in May has not been sufficiently publicised by FIFA and insist that a winter tournament in Qatar is by no means a fait accompli.
November 6 – Asia’s top Olympic official has stepped into the debate over a winter World Cup in 2022, ruling out the idea of the winter Olympics the same year being shifted from its traditional February time slot.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 6 – The international players’ union FIFPro have re-iterated their warning that players could boycott the 2022 World Cup if it is held in summer even though that is now becoming increasingly unlikely.
November 6 – The International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS), an international focussed on sport safety, security and integrity, has been named as a sponsor of the World Football Forum being held in Moscow next week.
Argentina will not be bidding for the centenary World Cup in 2030, opening the door to Chile or even inaugural hosts Uruguay.
The 2030 tournament seems almost certain to go back to South America for the first time since this year’s World Cup in Brazil.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 3 – Almost four years after awarding Qatar the 2022 World Cup, FIFA appears to have edged ever-closer to an unprecedented decision to break with tradition and stage the tournament in winter because of the fearsome Gulf mid-summer heat.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 3 – As football’s stakeholders gather at FIFA headquarters today for the latest meeting to determine exactly when to stage the 2022 World Cup, FIFA’s leading medical expert has insisted once again that the Qatar tournament must not be staged in the middle of the Gulf summer.
October 31 – The Russia 2018 World Cup will be held at 12 stadiums across 11 cities. In keeping with World Cup tradidition a series of posters have been designed to promote the World Cup and refelct the culture and traditions of the country’s football. Pictured here is a gallery of the posters from the 11 cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Yekaterinburg, Samara, Sochi and Rostov-on-Don.