2018 FIFA World Cup - wikipedia 2018 FIFA World Cup 2018 FIFA World Cup `` 2018 World Cup '' redirects here. For other competitions of that name, see 2018 World Cup ( disambiguation ). `` FIFA 2018 '' redirects here. For the video game, see FIFA 18. This article documents a current sporting event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses. Initial news reports, scores, or statistics may be unreliable. The last updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. 2018 FIFA World Cup Чемпионат мира по футболу FIFA 2018 Chempionat mira po futbolu FIFA 2018 2018 FIFA World Cup official logo Tournament details Host country Russia Dates 14 June -- 15 July Teams 32 ( from 5 confederations ) Venue ( s ) 12 ( in 11 host cities ) Tournament statistics Matches played 17 Goals scored 42 ( 2.47 per match ) Attendance 807,220 ( 47,484 per match ) Top scorer ( s ) Cristiano Ronaldo Denis Cheryshev ( 3 goals each ) ← 2014 2022 → All statistics correct as of 19 June 2018. The 2018 FIFA World Cup is the 21st FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament contested by the men 's national teams of the member associations of FIFA. It is currently ongoing in Russia starting from 14 June and will end with the final match on 15 July 2018. The country was awarded the hosting rights on 2 December 2010. This is the first World Cup to be held in Eastern Europe, and the eleventh time that it has been held in Europe. All of the stadium venues are in or just near European Russia to keep travel time manageable. At an estimated cost of over $14.2 billion, it is the most expensive World Cup ever. The final tournament involves 32 national teams, which include 31 teams determined through qualifying competitions and the automatically qualified host team. Of the 32 teams, 20 make back - to - back appearances following the last tournament in 2014, including defending champions Germany, while both Iceland and Panama make their first appearances at a FIFA World Cup. A total of 64 matches will be played in 12 venues located in 11 cities. The final will take place on 15 July at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow. The winners of the World Cup will qualify for the 2021 FIFA Confederations Cup. Contents 1 Host selection 2 Teams 2.1 Qualification 2.2 Draw 2.3 Squads 3 Referees 4 Venues 4.1 Stadiums 4.2 Team base camps 5 Preparation and costs 5.1 Budget 5.2 Infrastructure spending 5.3 Volunteers 5.4 Transport 6 Schedule 7 Opening ceremony 8 Group stage 8.1 Tiebreakers 8.2 Group A 8.3 Group B 8.4 Group C 8.5 Group D 8.6 Group E 8.7 Group F 8.8 Group G 8.9 Group H 9 Knockout stage 9.1 Bracket 9.2 Round of 16 9.3 Quarter - finals 9.4 Semi-finals 9.5 Third place play - off 9.6 Final 10 Statistics 10.1 Goalscorers 10.2 Discipline 11 Prize money 12 Marketing 12.1 Branding 12.2 Mascot 12.3 Ticketing 12.4 Match ball 12.5 Merchandise 12.6 Official song 13 Controversies 13.1 Host selection 13.2 Response to Skripal poisoning 13.3 Terrorist threats 14 Broadcasting rights 15 Sponsorship 16 See also 17 Notes 18 References 19 External links Host selection Main article : Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup bid Russian bid personnel celebrate the awarding of the 2018 World Cup to Russia, December 2010. Russian president Vladimir Putin holding the FIFA World Cup Trophy at a pre-tournament ceremony in Moscow, September 2017 The 100 - ruble commemorative banknote celebrates the 2018 FIFA World Cup. It features an image of Russian goalkeeper Lev Yashin. The bidding procedure to host the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup tournaments began in January 2009, and national associations had until 2 February 2009 to register their interest. Initially, nine countries placed bids for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, but Mexico later withdrew from proceedings, and Indonesia 's bid was rejected by FIFA in February 2010 after the Indonesian government failed to submit a letter to support the bid. During the bidding process, the three remaining non-UEFA nations ( Australia, Japan, and the United States ) gradually withdrew from the 2018 bids, and the UEFA nations were thus ruled out of the 2022 bid. As such, there were eventually four bids for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, two of which were joint bids : England, Russia, Netherlands / Belgium, and Portugal / Spain. The 22 - member FIFA Executive Committee convened in Zürich on 2 December 2010 to vote to select the hosts of both tournaments. Russia won the right to be the 2018 host in the second round of voting. The Portugal / Spain bid came second, and that from Belgium / Netherlands third. England, which was bidding to host its second tournament, was eliminated in the first round. The voting results were as follows : 2018 FIFA bidding ( majority 12 votes ) Bidders Votes Round 1 Round 2 Russia 9 13 Portugal / Spain 7 7 Belgium / Netherlands England Eliminated The process was not without criticism. Allegations of bribery on the part of the Russian team and corruption from FIFA members were made particularly by the English Football Association. It was alleged that four members of the executive committee had requested bribes to vote for England, and Sepp Blatter said that it had already been arranged before the vote that Russia would win. The 2014 Garcia Report, an internal investigation led by Michael J. Garcia, was withheld from public release by Hans - Joachim Eckert, FIFA 's head of adjudication on ethical matters. Eckert instead released a shorter revised summary, and his ( and therefore FIFA 's ) reluctance to publish the full report caused Garcia to resign in protest. Due to such controversy, the FA refused to accept Eckert 's absolving of Russia from blame, with Greg Dyke calling for a re-examination of the affair and David Bernstein calling for a boycott of the World Cup. Teams Qualification Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification For the first time in the history of the FIFA World Cup, all eligible nations -- the 209 FIFA member associations minus automatically qualified hosts Russia -- applied to enter the qualifying process. Zimbabwe and Indonesia were later disqualified before playing their first matches, while Gibraltar and Kosovo, who joined FIFA on 13 May 2016 after the qualifying draw but before European qualifying had begun, also entered the competition. Places in the tournament were allocated to continental confederations, with the allocation unchanged from the 2014 World Cup. The first qualification game began in Dili, Timor Leste, on 12 March 2015 as part of the AFC 's qualification, and the main qualifying draw took place at the Konstantinovsky Palace in Strelna, Saint Petersburg on 25 July 2015 at 18 : 00 local time ( UTC + 3 ). Of the 32 nations qualified to play at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, 20 countries competed at the previous tournament in 2014. Both Iceland and Panama qualified for the first time, with the former becoming the smallest country in terms of population to reach the World Cup. Other teams returning after absences of at least three tournaments include : Egypt, returning to the finals after their last appearance in 1990 ; Morocco, who last competed in 1998 ; Peru, returning after 1982 ; and Senegal, competing for the second time after reaching the quarter - finals in 2002. It is the first time three Nordic countries ( Denmark, Iceland and Sweden ) and four Arab nations ( Egypt, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia ) have qualified for the World Cup. Notable countries that failed to qualify include four - time champions Italy ( for the first time since 1958 ) and three - time runners - up the Netherlands ( for the first time since 2002 ), and four reigning continental champions : 2017 Africa Cup of Nations winners Cameroon, two - time Copa América champions and 2017 Confederations Cup runners - up Chile, 2016 OFC Nations Cup winners New Zealand, and 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup champions United States ( for the first time since 1986 ). The other notable qualifying streaks broken were for Ghana and Ivory Coast, who had both made the previous three tournaments. Note : Numbers in parentheses indicate positions in the FIFA World Rankings at the time of the tournament. AFC ( 5 ) Australia ( 36 ) Iran ( 37 ) Japan ( 61 ) Saudi Arabia ( 67 ) South Korea ( 57 ) CAF ( 5 ) Egypt ( 45 ) Morocco ( 41 ) Nigeria ( 48 ) Senegal ( 27 ) Tunisia ( 21 ) CONCACAF ( 3 ) Costa Rica ( 23 ) Mexico ( 15 ) Panama ( 55 ) CONMEBOL ( 5 ) Argentina ( 5 ) Brazil ( 2 ) Colombia ( 16 ) Peru ( 11 ) Uruguay ( 14 ) OFC ( 0 ) None qualified UEFA ( 14 ) Belgium ( 3 ) Croatia ( 20 ) Denmark ( = 12 ) England ( = 12 ) France ( 7 ) Germany ( 1 ) Iceland ( 22 ) Poland ( 8 ) Portugal ( 4 ) Russia ( 70 ) Serbia ( 34 ) Spain ( 10 ) Sweden ( 24 ) Switzerland ( 6 ) Teams qualified for World Cup Teams failed to qualify for World Cup Teams expelled from the tournament by FIFA prior to playing a match Countries were not FIFA members Draw Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup seeding The draw was held on 1 December 2017 at 18 : 00 MSK at the State Kremlin Palace in Moscow. The 32 teams were drawn into 8 groups of 4, by selecting one team from each of the 4 ranked pots. For the draw, the teams were allocated to four pots based on the FIFA World Rankings of October 2017. Pot 1 contained the hosts Russia ( who were automatically assigned to position A1 ) and the best seven teams, pot 2 contained the next best eight teams, and so on for pots 3 and 4. This was different from previous draws, when only pot 1 was based on FIFA rankings while the remaining pots were based on geographical considerations. However, teams from the same confederation still were not drawn against each other for the group stage, except that two UEFA teams could be in each group. Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4 Russia ( 65 ) Germany ( 1 ) Brazil ( 2 ) Portugal ( 3 ) Argentina ( 4 ) Belgium ( 5 ) Poland ( 6 ) France ( 7 ) Spain ( 8 ) Peru ( 10 ) Switzerland ( 11 ) England ( 12 ) Colombia ( 13 ) Mexico ( 16 ) Uruguay ( 17 ) Croatia ( 18 ) Denmark ( 19 ) Iceland ( 21 ) Costa Rica ( 22 ) Sweden ( 25 ) Tunisia ( 28 ) Egypt ( 30 ) Senegal ( 32 ) Iran ( 34 ) Serbia ( 38 ) Nigeria ( 41 ) Australia ( 43 ) Japan ( 44 ) Morocco ( 48 ) Panama ( 49 ) South Korea ( 62 ) Saudi Arabia ( 63 ) Squads Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup squads Each team had to name a preliminary squad of 35 players. From the preliminary squad, the team had to name a final squad of 23 players ( three of whom must be goalkeepers ) by 4 June. Players in the final squad may be replaced due to serious injury up to 24 hours prior to kickoff of the team 's first match and such replacements do not need to have been named in the preliminary squad. For players named in the 35 - player preliminary squad, there was a mandatory rest period between 21 and 27 May 2018, except for those involved in the 2018 UEFA Champions League Final played on 26 May. Initially the preliminary squads were to have 30 players but, in February 2018, it was announced that the number of players to be named in the provisional squads would be increased to 35. Referees Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup officials Joel Aguilar gives a penalty kick after VAR ( South Korea vs. Sweden ) On 16 March 2018, the FIFA Council approved the use of video assistant referees ( VAR ) for the first time in a FIFA World Cup tournament. On 29 March 2018, FIFA released the list of 36 referees and 63 assistant referees selected to oversee matches. On 30 April 2018, FIFA released the list of 13 video assistant referees, who will solely act as VARs in the tournament. On 30 May 2018, Saudi referee Fahad Al - Mirdasi was banned for life over a match fixing attempt, he and his two assistant referees, Mohammed Al Abakry and Abdulah Al Shalwai, were removed. A new referee was not appointed, but two assistant referees, Hasan Al Mahri of United Arab Emirates and Hiroshi Yamauchi of Japan, were added to the list. On 15 June 2018, Diego Costa 's goal against Portugal became the first World Cup goal based on a VAR decision ; the first penalty as a result of a VAR decision was awarded to France in their match against Australia on 16 June and resulted in a goal by Antoine Griezmann. show List of officials Confederation Referee Assistant Referees Video Assistant Referees AFC Alireza Faghani ( Iran ) Reza Sokhandan ( Iran ) Mohammadreza Mansouri ( Iran ) Abdulrahman Al - Jassim ( Qatar ) Ravshan Irmatov ( Uzbekistan ) Abdukhamidullo Rasulov ( Uzbekistan ) Jakhongir Saidov ( Uzbekistan ) Mohammed Abdulla Hassan Mohamed ( United Arab Emirates ) Mohamed Al Hammadi ( United Arab Emirates ) Hasan Al Mahri ( United Arab Emirates ) Ryuji Sato ( Japan ) Toru Sagara ( Japan ) Hiroshi Yamauchi ( Japan ) Nawaf Shukralla ( Bahrain ) Yaser Tulefat ( Bahrain ) Taleb Al Maari ( Qatar ) CAF Malang Diedhiou ( Senegal ) Djibril Camara ( Senegal ) El Hadji Samba ( Senegal ) Bakary Gassama ( Gambia ) Jean Claude Birumushahu ( Burundi ) Abdelhak Etchiali ( Algeria ) Gehad Grisha ( Egypt ) Redouane Achik ( Morocco ) Waleed Ahmed ( Sudan ) Janny Sikazwe ( Zambia ) Jerson Dos Santos ( Angola ) Zakhele Siwela ( South Africa ) Mehdi Abid Charef ( Algeria ) Anouar Hmila ( Tunisia ) Bamlak Tessema Weyesa ( Ethiopia ) CONCACAF Joel Aguilar ( El Salvador ) Juan Zumba ( El Salvador ) Juan Carlos Mora ( Costa Rica ) Mark Geiger ( United States ) Frank Anderson ( United States ) Joe Fletcher ( Canada ) César Arturo Ramos ( Mexico ) Marvin Torrentera ( Mexico ) Miguel Hernández ( Mexico ) John Pitti ( Panama ) Gabriel Victoria ( Panama ) Jair Marrufo ( United States ) Corey Rockwell ( United States ) Ricardo Montero ( Costa Rica ) CONMEBOL Julio Bascuñán ( Chile ) Carlos Astroza ( Chile ) Christian Schiemann ( Chile ) Wilton Sampaio ( Brazil ) Gery Vargas ( Bolivia ) Mauro Vigliano ( Argentina ) Enrique Cáceres ( Paraguay ) Eduardo Cardozo ( Paraguay ) Juan Zorrilla ( Paraguay ) Andrés Cunha ( Uruguay ) Nicolás Tarán ( Uruguay ) Mauricio Espinosa ( Uruguay ) Néstor Pitana ( Argentina ) Hernán Maidana ( Argentina ) Juan Pablo Bellati ( Argentina ) Sandro Ricci ( Brazil ) Emerson de Carvalho ( Brazil ) Marcelo Van Gasse ( Brazil ) Wilmar Roldán ( Colombia ) Alexander Guzmán ( Colombia ) Cristian de la Cruz ( Colombia ) OFC Matthew Conger ( New Zealand ) Simon Lount ( New Zealand ) Tevita Makasini ( Tonga ) Norbert Hauata ( Tahiti ) Bertrand Brial ( New Caledonia ) UEFA Felix Brych ( Germany ) Mark Borsch ( Germany ) Stefan Lupp ( Germany ) Bastian Dankert ( Germany ) Paweł Gil ( Poland ) Massimiliano Irrati ( Italy ) Tiago Martins ( Portugal ) Danny Makkelie ( Netherlands ) Daniele Orsato ( Italy ) Artur Soares Dias ( Portugal ) Paolo Valeri ( Italy ) Felix Zwayer ( Germany ) Cüneyt Çakır ( Turkey ) Bahattin Duran ( Turkey ) Tarik Ongun ( Turkey ) Sergei Karasev ( Russia ) Anton Averianov ( Russia ) Tikhon Kalugin ( Russia ) Björn Kuipers ( Netherlands ) Sander van Roekel ( Netherlands ) Erwin Zeinstra ( Netherlands ) Szymon Marciniak ( Poland ) Pawel Sokolnicki ( Poland ) Tomasz Listkiewicz ( Poland ) Antonio Mateu Lahoz ( Spain ) Pau Cebrián Devís ( Spain ) Roberto Díaz Pérez ( Spain ) Milorad Mažić ( Serbia ) Milovan Ristić ( Serbia ) Dalibor Djurdjević ( Serbia ) Gianluca Rocchi ( Italy ) Elenito Di Liberatore ( Italy ) Mauro Tonolini ( Italy ) Damir Skomina ( Slovenia ) Jure Praprotnik ( Slovenia ) Robert Vukan ( Slovenia ) Clément Turpin ( France ) Cyril Gringore ( France ) Nicolas Danos ( France ) Venues Wikimedia Commons has media related to Stadiums of FIFA World Cup 2018. Russia proposed the following host cities : Kaliningrad, Kazan, Krasnodar, Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, Rostov - on - Don, Saint Petersburg, Samara, Saransk, Sochi, Volgograd, Yaroslavl, and Yekaterinburg. All the cities are in or just outside European Russia to reduce travel time for the teams in the huge country. The bid evaluation report stated : `` The Russian bid proposes 13 host cities and 16 stadiums, thus exceeding FIFA 's minimum requirement. Three of the 16 stadiums would be renovated, and 13 would be newly constructed. '' In October 2011, Russia decreased the number of stadiums from 16 to 14. Construction of the proposed Podolsk stadium in the Moscow region was cancelled by the regional government, and also in the capital, Otkrytiye Arena was competing with Dynamo Stadium over which would be constructed first. The final choice of host cities was announced on 29 September 2012. The number of cities was further reduced to 11 and number of stadiums to 12 as Krasnodar and Yaroslavl were dropped from the final list. Of the 12 stadiums used for the tournament, 3 ( Luzhniki, Yekaterinburg and Sochi ) have been extensively renovated and the other 9 stadiums to be used are brand new ; $11.8 billion has been spent on hosting the tournament. Sepp Blatter stated in July 2014 that due to concerns over the completion of venues in Russia, the number of venues for the tournament may be reduced from 12 to 10. He also said, `` We are not going to be in a situation, as is the case of one, two or even three stadiums in South Africa, where it is a problem of what you do with these stadiums ''. Iran 's squad against Morocco in St. Petersburg on 15 June 2018 In October 2014, on their first official visit to Russia, FIFA 's inspection committee and its head Chris Unger visited St Petersburg, Sochi, Kazan and both Moscow venues. They were satisfied with the progress. On 8 October 2015, FIFA and the Local Organising Committee agreed on the official names of the stadiums used during the tournament. Of the twelve venues used, the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow and the Saint Petersburg Stadium -- the two largest stadiums in Russia -- will be used most, both hosting seven matches. Sochi, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod and Samara will all host six matches, including one quarter - final match each, while the Otkrytiye Stadium in Moscow and Rostov - on - Don will host five matches, including one round - of - 16 match each. Volgograd, Kaliningrad, Yekaterinburg and Saransk will all host four matches, but will not host any knockout stage games. FIFA President Gianni Infantino stated in February 2018 that he was `` very satisfied so far with the progress in Russia. I 'm sure we 'll have a great World Cup there -- not only a great World Cup but the best World Cup ever. '' Stadiums A total of twelve stadiums in eleven Russian cities have been built and renovated for the FIFA World Cup. Samara : Samara Arena. The construction officially started on 21 July 2014. The project was completed on 21 April 2018. Nizhny Novgorod : Nizhny Novgorod Stadium. The construction of the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium commenced in 2015. The project was completed in December 2017. Volgograd : Volgograd Arena. The main arena of Volgograd was built on the demolished Central Stadium site, at the foot of the Mamayev Kurgan memorial complex. The stadium was commissioned on 3 April 2018. Ekaterinburg : Ekaterinburg Arena. The Central Stadium of Ekaterinburg has been renovated for the FIFA World Cup. The arena 's stands will have a capacity of 35,000 spectators. The renovation project was completed in December 2017. Saransk : Mordovia Arena. The stadium in Saransk was scheduled to be commissioned in 2012 in time for the opening of the all - Russian Spartakiad, but the plan was revised. The opening was rescheduled to 2017. The arena hosted its first match on 21 April 2018. Rostov - on - Don : Rostov Arena. The stadium is located on the left bank of the Don River. The stadium construction was completed on 22 December 2017. Kaliningrad : Kaliningrad Stadium. The first piles were driven into the ground in September 2015. On 11 April 2018 the new stadium hosted its first match. Kazan : Kazan Arena. The stadium was built for the 2013 Summer Universiade. It has since hosted the 2015 World Aquatics Championship and the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup. The stadium serves as a home arena to FC Rubin Kazan. Moscow : Spartak Stadium. The stadium is a home arena to its namesake FC Spartak Moscow. In accordance with the FIFA requirements, during the 2018 World Cup it is called Spartak Stadium instead of its usual name Otkritie Arena. The stadium hosted its first match on 5 September 2014. Sochi : Fisht Stadium. The stadium hosted the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2014 Winter Olympics. Afterwards, it was renovated in preparation for the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and 2018 World Cup. Saint Petersburg : Saint Petersburg Stadium. The construction of the stadium commenced in 2007. The project was officially completed on 29 December 2016. The stadium has hosted games of the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and will serve as a venue for the 2018 FIFA World Cup and the 2020 UEFA European Football Championship. Moscow : Luzhniki Stadium. The largest stadium in the country was closed for renovation in 2013. The stadium was commissioned in November 2017. Moscow Saint Petersburg Sochi Luzhniki Stadium Otkritie Arena ( Spartak Stadium ) Krestovsky Stadium ( Saint Petersburg Stadium ) Fisht Olympic Stadium ( Fisht Stadium ) Capacity : 78,011 Capacity : 44,190 Capacity : 64,468 Capacity : 44,287 Samara Moscow Saint Petersburg Kaliningrad Nizhny Novgorod Kazan Samara Volgograd Saransk Sochi Rostov - on - Don Yekaterinburg Kazan Cosmos Arena ( Samara Arena ) Kazan Arena Capacity : 41,970 Capacity : 42,873 Rostov - on - Don Volgograd Rostov Arena Volgograd Arena Capacity : 43,472 Capacity : 43,713 Nizhny Novgorod Saransk Yekaterinburg Kaliningrad Nizhny Novgorod Stadium Mordovia Arena Central Stadium ( Ekaterinburg Arena ) Kaliningrad Stadium Capacity : 43,319 Capacity : 41,685 Capacity : 33,061 Capacity : 33,973 Team base camps Base camps will be used by the 32 national squads to stay and train before and during the World Cup tournament. On 9 February 2018, FIFA announced the base camps for each participating team. Argentina : Bronnitsy, Moscow Oblast Australia : Kazan, Republic of Tatarstan Belgium : Krasnogorsky, Moscow Oblast Brazil : Sochi, Krasnodar Krai Colombia : Verkhneuslonsky, Republic of Tatarstan Costa Rica : Saint Petersburg Croatia : Roshchino, Leningrad Oblast Denmark : Anapa, Krasnodar Krai Egypt : Grozny, Chechen Republic England : Repino, Saint Petersburg France : Istra, Moscow Oblast Germany : Moscow Iceland : Gelendzhik, Krasnodar Krai Iran : Bakovka, Moscow Oblast Japan : Kazan, Republic of Tatarstan Mexico : Khimki, Moscow Oblast Morocco : Voronezh, Voronezh Oblast Nigeria : Yessentuki, Stavropol Krai Panama : Saransk, Republic of Mordovia Peru : Moscow Poland : Sochi, Krasnodar Krai Portugal : Ramenskoye, Moscow Oblast Russia : Khimki, Moscow Oblast Saudi Arabia : Saint Petersburg Senegal : Kaluga, Kaluga Oblast Serbia : Svetlogorsk, Kaliningrad Oblast South Korea : Saint Petersburg Spain : Krasnodar, Krasnodar Krai Switzerland : Togliatti, Samara Oblast Sweden : Gelendzhik, Krasnodar Krai Tunisia : Pervomayskoye, Moscow Oblast Uruguay : Bor, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast Preparation and costs Budget At an estimated cost of over $14.2 billion as of June 2018, it is the most expensive World Cup in history, surpassing the cost of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. The Russian government had originally earmarked a budget of around $20 billion which was later slashed to $10 billion for the preparations of the World Cup, of which half is spent on transport infrastructure. As part of the program for preparation to the 2018 FIFA World Cup, a federal sub-program `` Construction and Renovation of Transport Infrastructure '' was implemented with a total budget of 352.5 billion rubles, with 170.3 billion coming from the federal budget, 35.1 billion from regional budgets, and 147.1 billion from investors. The biggest item of federal spending was the aviation infrastructure ( 117.8 billion rubles ). Construction of new hotels was a crucial area of infrastructure development in the World Cup host cities. Costs continued to balloon as preparations were underway. Infrastructure spending Platov International Airport in Rostov - on - Don was upgraded with automated air traffic control systems, modern surveillance, navigation, communication, control, and meteorological support systems. Koltsovo Airport in Yekaterinburg was upgraded with radio - engineering tools for flight operation and received its second runway strip. Saransk Airport received a new navigation system ; the city also got two new hotels, Mercure Saransk Centre and Four Points by Sheraton Saransk as well as few other smaller accommodation facilities. In Samara, new tram lines were laid. Khrabrovo Airport in Kaliningrad was upgraded with radio navigation and weather equipment. Renovation and upgrade of radio - engineering tools for flight operation was completed in the airports of Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Volgograd, Samara, Yekaterinburg, Kazan and Sochi. On 27 March, the Ministry of Construction Industry, Housing and Utilities Sector of Russia reported that all communications within its area of responsibility have been commissioned. The last facility commissioned was a waste treatment station in Volgograd. In Yekaterinburg, where four matches are hosted, hosting costs increased to over 7.4 billion rubles, over-running the 5.6 billion rubles originally allocated from the state and regional budget. Volunteers Volunteer applications to the Russia 2018 Local Organising Committee opened on 1 June 2016. The 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Volunteer Program has set a new record : by 30 December when application period was over, the organisers received about 177,000 applications. The 2018 FIFA World Cup will engage a total of 17,040 volunteers and more than 18,000 city volunteers in the 11 host cities. They received training at 15 Volunteer Centres of the Local Organising Committee based in 15 universities, and in Volunteer Centres in the host cities. Preference, especially in the key areas, is given to those with knowledge of foreign languages and volunteering experience. Volunteers can be nationals of Russia or any other countries. Transport Free public transport services are being offered for ticketholders during the World Cup, including additional trains linking between host cities, as well as services such as bus service within them. Schedule A ceremony in Moscow launching the countdown from 1,000 days until the 2018 FIFA Football World Cup begins in Russia The full schedule was announced by FIFA on 24 July 2015 ( without kick - off times, which were confirmed later ). On 1 December 2017, following the final draw, six kick - off times were adjusted by FIFA. Russia was placed in position A1 in the group stage and will play in the opening match at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on 14 June against Saudi Arabia, the two lowest ranked teams of the tournament at the time of the final draw. The Luzhniki Stadium will also host the second semi-final on 11 July and the final on 15 July. The Krestovsky Stadium in Saint Petersburg will host the first semi-final on 10 July and the third place play - off on 14 July. Opening ceremony Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony A scene from the opening ceremony at Luzhniki Stadium The opening ceremony took place on Thursday, 14 June 2018, at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, preceding the opening match of the tournament between hosts Russia and Saudi Arabia. Former Brazilian World Cup winning striker Ronaldo walked out with a child wearing a Russia 2018 shirt. English pop singer Robbie Williams then performed two songs before he and Russian soprano Aida Garifullina performed a duet while other performers emerged, dressed in the flags of all 32 teams and carrying a sign bearing the name of each nation. Dancers were also present. Ronaldo returned with the official match ball of the 2018 World Cup which was sent into space with the International Space Station crew in March and came back to Earth in early June. Group stage Champions Runners - up Third place Fourth place Quarter - finals Round of 16 Group stage Competing countries are divided into eight groups of four teams ( groups A through H ). Teams in each group play one another in a round - robin basis. A win is awarded 3 points and a tie / draw is awarded 1 point to each team. After matches are completed, the top two teams of each group advance to the first knockout stage ( round of 16 ). All times listed below are local time. Tiebreakers The top two teams after the round - robin is completed in each group are determined as follows ( regulations Article 32.5 ) : points obtained in all group matches ; goal difference in all group matches ; number of goals scored in all group matches ; If two or more teams are equal on the basis of the above three criteria, their rankings are determined as follows : points obtained in the group matches between the teams concerned ; goal difference in the group matches between the teams concerned ; number of goals scored in the group matches between the teams concerned ; fair play points first yellow card : minus 1 point ; indirect red card ( second yellow card ) : minus 3 points ; direct red card : minus 4 points ; yellow card and direct red card : minus 5 points ; drawing of lots by the FIFA Organising Committee. Group A Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup Group A Pos Team Pld GF GA GD Pts Qualification Russia ( H ) 0 0 8 + 7 6 Advance to knockout stage Uruguay 0 0 0 + 1 Egypt 0 0 − 3 0 Saudi Arabia 0 0 0 5 − 5 0 Updated to match ( es ) played on 19 June 2018. Source : FIFA Rules for classification : Group stage tiebreakers ( H ) Host. 14 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 14 ) 18 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Russia 5 -- 0 Saudi Arabia Gazinsky 12 ' Cheryshev 43 ', 90 + 1 ' Dzyuba 71 ' Golovin 90 + 4 ' Report Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow Attendance : 78,011 Referee : Néstor Pitana ( Argentina ) 15 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 15 ) 17 : 00 YEKT ( UTC + 5 ) Egypt 0 -- 1 Uruguay Report Giménez 89 ' Central Stadium, Yekaterinburg Attendance : 27,015 Referee : Björn Kuipers ( Netherlands ) 19 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 19 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Russia 3 -- 1 Egypt Fathy 47 ' ( o.g. ) Cheryshev 59 ' Dzyuba 62 ' Report Salah 73 ' ( pen. ) Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg Attendance : 64,468 Referee : Enrique Cáceres ( Paraguay ) 20 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 20 ) 18 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Uruguay Match 18 Saudi Arabia Report Rostov Arena, Rostov - on - Don Referee : Clément Turpin ( France ) 25 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 25 ) 18 : 00 SAMT ( UTC + 4 ) Uruguay Match 33 Russia Report Cosmos Arena, Samara 25 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 25 ) 17 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Saudi Arabia Match 34 Egypt Report Volgograd Arena, Volgograd Group B Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup Group B Pos Team Pld GF GA GD Pts Qualification Iran 0 0 0 + 1 Advance to knockout stage Portugal 0 0 0 Spain 0 0 0 Morocco 0 0 0 − 1 0 Updated to match ( es ) played on 15 June 2018. Source : FIFA Rules for classification : Group stage tiebreakers 15 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 15 ) 18 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Morocco 0 -- 1 Iran Report Bouhaddouz 90 + 5 ' ( o.g. ) Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg Attendance : 62,548 Referee : Cüneyt Çakır ( Turkey ) 15 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 15 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Portugal 3 -- 3 Spain Ronaldo 4 ' ( pen. ), 44 ', 88 ' Report Costa 24 ', 55 ' Nacho 58 ' Fisht Olympic Stadium, Sochi Attendance : 43,866 Referee : Gianluca Rocchi ( Italy ) 20 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 20 ) 15 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Portugal Match 19 Morocco Report Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow Referee : Mark Geiger ( United States ) 20 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 20 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Iran Match 20 Spain Report Kazan Arena, Kazan Referee : Andrés Cunha ( Uruguay ) 25 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 25 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Iran Match 35 Portugal Report Mordovia Arena, Saransk 25 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 25 ) 20 : 00 KALT ( UTC + 2 ) Spain Match 36 Morocco Report Kaliningrad Stadium, Kaliningrad Group C Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup Group C Pos Team Pld GF GA GD Pts Qualification France 0 0 + 1 Advance to knockout stage Denmark 0 0 0 + 1 Australia 0 0 − 1 0 Peru 0 0 0 − 1 0 Updated to match ( es ) played on 16 June 2018. Source : FIFA Rules for classification : Group stage tiebreakers 16 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 16 ) 13 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) France 2 -- 1 Australia Griezmann 58 ' ( pen. ) Behich 81 ' ( o.g. ) Report Jedinak 62 ' ( pen. ) Kazan Arena, Kazan Attendance : 41,279 Referee : Andrés Cunha ( Uruguay ) 16 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 16 ) 19 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Peru 0 -- 1 Denmark Report Poulsen 59 ' Mordovia Arena, Saransk Attendance : 40,502 Referee : Bakary Gassama ( Gambia ) 21 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 21 ) 16 : 00 SAMT ( UTC + 4 ) Denmark Match 22 Australia Report Cosmos Arena, Samara Referee : Antonio Mateu Lahoz ( Spain ) 21 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 21 ) 20 : 00 YEKT ( UTC + 5 ) France Match 21 Peru Report Central Stadium, Yekaterinburg Referee : Mohammed Abdulla Hassan Mohamed ( United Arab Emirates ) 26 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 26 ) 17 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Denmark Match 37 France Report Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow 26 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 26 ) 17 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Australia Match 38 Peru Report Fisht Olympic Stadium, Sochi Group D Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup Group D Pos Team Pld GF GA GD Pts Qualification Croatia 0 0 0 + 2 Advance to knockout stage Argentina 0 0 0 Iceland 0 0 0 Nigeria 0 0 0 − 2 0 Updated to match ( es ) played on 16 June 2018. Source : FIFA Rules for classification : Group stage tiebreakers 16 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 16 ) 16 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Argentina 1 -- 1 Iceland Agüero 19 ' Report Finnbogason 23 ' Otkritie Arena, Moscow Attendance : 44,190 Referee : Szymon Marciniak ( Poland ) 16 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 16 ) 21 : 00 KALT ( UTC + 2 ) Croatia 2 -- 0 Nigeria Etebo 32 ' ( o.g. ) Modrić 71 ' ( pen. ) Report Kaliningrad Stadium, Kaliningrad Attendance : 31,136 Referee : Sandro Ricci ( Brazil ) 21 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 21 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Argentina Match 23 Croatia Report Nizhny Novgorod Stadium, Nizhny Novgorod Referee : Ravshan Irmatov ( Uzbekistan ) 22 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 22 ) 18 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Nigeria Match 24 Iceland Report Volgograd Arena, Volgograd 26 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 26 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Nigeria Match 39 Argentina Report Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg 26 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 26 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Iceland Match 40 Croatia Report Rostov Arena, Rostov - on - Don Group E Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup Group E Pos Team Pld GF GA GD Pts Qualification Serbia 0 0 0 + 1 Advance to knockout stage Brazil 0 0 0 Switzerland 0 0 0 Costa Rica 0 0 0 − 1 0 Updated to match ( es ) played on 17 June 2018. Source : FIFA Rules for classification : Group stage tiebreakers Notes : ^ Jump up to : Fair play points : Brazil − 1, Switzerland − 3. 17 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 17 ) 16 : 00 SAMT ( UTC + 4 ) Costa Rica 0 -- 1 Serbia Report Kolarov 56 ' Cosmos Arena, Samara Attendance : 41,432 Referee : Malang Diedhiou ( Senegal ) 17 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 17 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Brazil 1 -- 1 Switzerland Coutinho 20 ' Report Zuber 50 ' Rostov Arena, Rostov - on - Don Attendance : 43,109 Referee : César Arturo Ramos ( Mexico ) 22 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 22 ) 15 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Brazil Match 25 Costa Rica Report Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg 22 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 22 ) 20 : 00 KALT ( UTC + 2 ) Serbia Match 26 Switzerland Report Kaliningrad Stadium, Kaliningrad 27 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 27 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Serbia Match 41 Brazil Report Otkritie Arena, Moscow 27 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 27 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Switzerland Match 42 Costa Rica Report Nizhny Novgorod Stadium, Nizhny Novgorod Group F Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup Group F Pos Team Pld GF GA GD Pts Qualification Sweden 0 0 0 + 1 Advance to knockout stage Mexico 0 0 0 + 1 Germany 0 0 0 − 1 0 South Korea 0 0 0 − 1 0 Updated to match ( es ) played on 18 June 2018. Source : FIFA Rules for classification : Group stage tiebreakers Notes : ^ Jump up to : Fair play points : Sweden − 1, Mexico − 2. 17 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 17 ) 18 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Germany 0 -- 1 Mexico Report Lozano 35 ' Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow Attendance : 78,011 Referee : Alireza Faghani ( Iran ) 18 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 18 ) 15 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Sweden 1 -- 0 South Korea Granqvist 65 ' ( pen. ) Report Nizhny Novgorod Stadium, Nizhny Novgorod Attendance : 42,300 Referee : Joel Aguilar ( El Salvador ) 23 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 23 ) 18 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) South Korea Match 28 Mexico Report Rostov Arena, Rostov - on - Don 23 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 23 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Germany Match 27 Sweden Report Fisht Olympic Stadium, Sochi 27 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 27 ) 17 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) South Korea Match 43 Germany Report Kazan Arena, Kazan 27 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 27 ) 19 : 00 YEKT ( UTC + 5 ) Mexico Match 44 Sweden Report Central Stadium, Yekaterinburg Group G Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup Group G Pos Team Pld GF GA GD Pts Qualification Belgium 0 0 0 + 3 Advance to knockout stage England 0 0 + 1 Tunisia 0 0 − 1 0 Panama 0 0 0 − 3 0 Updated to match ( es ) played on 18 June 2018. Source : FIFA Rules for classification : Group stage tiebreakers 18 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 18 ) 18 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Belgium 3 -- 0 Panama Mertens 47 ' Lukaku 69 ', 75 ' Report Fisht Olympic Stadium, Sochi Attendance : 43,257 Referee : Janny Sikazwe ( Zambia ) 18 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 18 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Tunisia 1 -- 2 England Sassi 35 ' ( pen. ) Report Kane 11 ', 90 + 1 ' Volgograd Arena, Volgograd Attendance : 41,064 Referee : Wilmar Roldán ( Colombia ) 23 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 23 ) 15 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Belgium Match 29 Tunisia Report Otkritie Arena, Moscow 24 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 24 ) 15 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) England Match 30 Panama Report Nizhny Novgorod Stadium, Nizhny Novgorod 28 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 28 ) 20 : 00 KALT ( UTC + 2 ) England Match 45 Belgium Report Kaliningrad Stadium, Kaliningrad 28 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 28 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Panama Match 46 Tunisia Report Mordovia Arena, Saransk Group H Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup Group H Pos Team Pld GF GA GD Pts Qualification Japan 0 0 + 1 Advance to knockout stage Senegal 0 0 + 1 Poland 0 0 − 1 0 Colombia 0 0 − 1 0 Updated to match ( es ) played on 19 June 2018. Source : FIFA Rules for classification : Group stage tiebreakers Notes : ^ Jump up to : Fair play points : Japan − 1, Senegal − 2. ^ Jump up to : Fair play points : Poland − 1, Colombia − 6. 19 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 19 ) 15 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Colombia 1 -- 2 Japan Quintero 39 ' Report Kagawa 6 ' ( pen. ) Osako 73 ' Mordovia Arena, Saransk Attendance : 40,842 Referee : Damir Skomina ( Slovenia ) 19 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 19 ) 18 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Poland 1 -- 2 Senegal Krychowiak 86 ' Report Cionek 37 ' ( o.g. ) Niang 60 ' Otkritie Arena, Moscow Attendance : 44,190 Referee : Nawaf Shukralla ( Bahrain ) 24 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 24 ) 20 : 00 YEKT ( UTC + 5 ) Japan Match 32 Senegal Report Central Stadium, Yekaterinburg 24 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 24 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Poland Match 31 Colombia Report Kazan Arena, Kazan 28 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 28 ) 17 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Japan Match 47 Poland Report Volgograd Arena, Volgograd 28 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 28 ) 18 : 00 SAMT ( UTC + 4 ) Senegal Match 48 Colombia Report Cosmos Arena, Samara Knockout stage Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup knockout stage In the knockout stages, if a match is level at the end of normal playing time, extra time is played ( two periods of 15 minutes each ) and followed, if necessary, by a penalty shoot - out to determine the winners. If a match goes into extra time, each team will be allowed to make a fourth substitution, the first time this has been allowed in a FIFA World Cup tournament. Bracket Round of 16 Quarter - finals Semi-finals Final 30 June -- Sochi Winners Group A 6 July -- Nizhny Novgorod Runners - up Group B Winners Match 49 30 June -- Kazan Winners Match 50 Winners Group C 10 July -- Saint Petersburg Runners - up Group D Winners Match 57 2 July -- Samara Winners Match 58 Winners Group E 6 July -- Kazan Runners - up Group F Winners Match 53 2 July -- Rostov - on - Don Winners Match 54 Winners Group G 15 July -- Moscow ( Luzhniki ) Runners - up Group H Winners Match 61 1 July -- Moscow ( Luzhniki ) Winners Match 62 Winners Group B 7 July -- Sochi Runners - up Group A Winners Match 51 1 July -- Nizhny Novgorod Winners Match 52 Winners Group D 11 July -- Moscow ( Luzhniki ) Runners - up Group C Winners Match 59 3 July -- Saint Petersburg Winners Match 60 Third place play - off Winners Group F 7 July -- Samara 14 July -- Saint Petersburg Runners - up Group E Winners Match 55 Losers Match 61 3 July -- Moscow ( Otkritie ) Winners Match 56 Losers Match 62 Winners Group H Runners - up Group G Round of 16 30 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 30 ) 17 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Group C Match 50 Runners - up Group D Kazan Arena, Kazan 30 June 2018 ( 2018 - 06 - 30 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Group A Match 49 Runners - up Group B Fisht Olympic Stadium, Sochi 1 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 01 ) 17 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Group B Match 51 Runners - up Group A Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow 1 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 01 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Group D Match 52 Runners - up Group C Nizhny Novgorod Stadium, Nizhny Novgorod 2 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 02 ) 18 : 00 SAMT ( UTC + 4 ) Winners Group E Match 53 Runners - up Group F Cosmos Arena, Samara 2 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 02 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Group G Match 54 Runners - up Group H Rostov Arena, Rostov - on - Don 3 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 03 ) 17 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Group F Match 55 Runners - up Group E Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg 3 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 03 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Group H Match 56 Runners - up Group G Otkritie Arena, Moscow Quarter - finals 6 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 06 ) 17 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Match 49 Match 57 Winners Match 50 Nizhny Novgorod Stadium, Nizhny Novgorod 6 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 06 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Match 53 Match 58 Winners Match 54 Kazan Arena, Kazan 7 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 07 ) 18 : 00 SAMT ( UTC + 4 ) Winners Match 55 Match 60 Winners Match 56 Cosmos Arena, Samara 7 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 07 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Match 51 Match 59 Winners Match 52 Fisht Olympic Stadium, Sochi Semi-finals 10 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 10 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Match 57 Match 61 Winners Match 58 Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg 11 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 11 ) 21 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Match 59 Match 62 Winners Match 60 Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow Third place play - off 14 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 14 ) 17 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Losers Match 61 Match 63 Losers Match 62 Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg Final Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup Final 15 July 2018 ( 2018 - 07 - 15 ) 18 : 00 MSK ( UTC + 3 ) Winners Match 61 Match 64 Winners Match 62 Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow Statistics Further information : 2018 FIFA World Cup statistics See also : List of FIFA World Cup records Goalscorers There have been 42 goals scored in 17 matches, for an average of 2.47 goals per match. 3 goals Cristiano Ronaldo Denis Cheryshev 2 goals Romelu Lukaku Harry Kane Artem Dzyuba Diego Costa 1 goal Sergio Agüero Mile Jedinak Dries Mertens Philippe Coutinho Juan Fernando Quintero Luka Modrić Yussuf Poulsen Mohamed Salah Antoine Griezmann Alfreð Finnbogason Shinji Kagawa Yuya Osako Hirving Lozano Grzegorz Krychowiak Yury Gazinsky Aleksandr Golovin M'Baye Niang Aleksandar Kolarov Nacho Andreas Granqvist Steven Zuber Ferjani Sassi José Giménez Own goals Aziz Behich ( against France ) Ahmed Fathy ( against Russia ) Aziz Bouhaddouz ( against Iran ) Oghenekaro Etebo ( against Croatia ) Thiago Cionek ( against Senegal ) Source : FIFA Discipline Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup disciplinary record Prize money Prize money amounts were announced in October 2017. Position Amount ( USD million ) Per team Total Champions 38 38 Runners - up 28 28 Third place 24 24 Fourth place 22 22 5th -- 8th place 16 64 9th -- 16th place 12 96 17th -- 32nd place 8 128 Total 400 Marketing The typeface `` Dusha '' used for branding Branding The tournament logo was unveiled on 28 October 2014 by cosmonauts at the International Space Station and then projected onto Moscow 's Bolshoi Theatre during an evening television programme. Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said that the logo was inspired by `` Russia 's rich artistic tradition and its history of bold achievement and innovation '', and FIFA President Sepp Blatter stated that it reflected the `` heart and soul '' of the country. For the branding, a typeface called Dusha ( from душа, Russian for soul ) was created by Portuguese design agency Brandia Central in 2014. Mascot Main article : Zabivaka Tournament mascot, wolf Zabivaka The official mascot for the tournament was unveiled 21 October 2016, and selected through a design competition among university students. A public vote was used to select from three finalists -- a cat, a tiger, and a wolf. The winner, with 53 % of approximately 1 million votes, was Zabivaka -- an anthropomorphic wolf dressed in the colors of the Russian national team. Zabivaka 's name is derived from the Russian word забивать, `` to score '', and his official backstory states that he is an aspiring football player who is `` charming, confident and social ''. Ticketing The first phase of ticket sales started on 14 September 2017, 12 : 00 Moscow Time, and lasted until 12 October 2017. The general visa policy of Russia will not apply to participants and spectators, who will be able to visit Russia without a visa right before and during the competition regardless of their citizenship. Spectators are nonetheless required to register for a `` Fan - ID '' -- a special photo identification pass by visiting the website https://www.fan-id.ru and for an enquiry write to support@fan-id.ru. A Fan - ID is required to enter the country visa - free, while a ticket, Fan - ID and a valid passport are required to enter stadiums for matches. Fan - IDs also grant World Cup attendees free access to public transport services, including buses, and train service between host cities. Fan - ID is administered by the Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media, who may revoke these accreditations at any time to `` ensure the defence capability or security of the state or public order ''. Match ball Match ball `` Telstar 18 '' The official match ball of the 2018 World Cup is called `` Telstar 18 '' and is based on the name and design of the first Adidas World Cup ball from 1970. It was introduced on 9 November 2017. Merchandise See also : FIFA World Cup video games On 30 April 2018, EA announced a free expansion for FIFA 18 based on the 2018 FIFA World Cup, featuring all 32 participating teams and all 12 stadiums used at the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Official song Main article : Live It Up ( Nicky Jam song ) The official song of the tournament is `` Live It Up '', with vocals from Will Smith, Nicky Jam and Era Istrefi, released on 25 May. The FIFA World Cup Official Music Video was released on 8 June. Controversies Main article : List of 2018 FIFA World Cup controversies 33 footballers who are alleged to be part of the steroid program are listed in the McLaren Report. On 22 December 2017, it was reported that FIFA fired a doctor who had been investigating doping in Russian football. On 22 May 2018 FIFA confirmed that the investigations concerning all Russian players named for the provisional squad of the FIFA World Cup in Russia had been completed, with the result that insufficient evidence was found to assert an anti-doping rule violation. FIFA also decided to exclude Russians from drug testing procedures at the tournament, to make sure that samples would not be tampered with. Host selection The choice of Russia as host has been challenged. Controversial issues have included the level of racism in Russian football, and discrimination against LGBT people in wider Russian society. Russia 's involvement in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine has also caused calls for the tournament to be moved, particularly following the annexation of Crimea. In 2014, FIFA President Sepp Blatter stated that `` The World Cup has been given and voted to Russia and we are going forward with our work ''. Allegations of corruption in the bidding processes for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups caused threats from England 's FA to boycott the tournament. FIFA appointed Michael J. Garcia, a US attorney, to investigate and produce a report on the corruption allegations. Although the report was never published, FIFA released a 42 - page summary of its findings as determined by German judge Hans - Joachim Eckert. Eckert 's summary cleared Russia and Qatar of any wrongdoing, but was denounced by critics as a whitewash. Garcia criticised the summary as being `` materially incomplete '' with `` erroneous representations of the facts and conclusions '', and appealed to FIFA 's Appeal Committee. The committee declined to hear his appeal, so Garcia resigned in protest of FIFA 's conduct, citing a `` lack of leadership '' and lack of confidence in the independence of Eckert. On 3 June 2015, the FBI confirmed that the federal authorities were investigating the bidding and awarding processes for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. In an interview published on 7 June 2015, Domenico Scala, the head of FIFA 's Audit And Compliance Committee, stated that `` should there be evidence that the awards to Qatar and Russia came only because of bought votes, then the awards could be cancelled ''. Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and former British Prime Minister David Cameron attended a meeting with FIFA vice-president Chung Mong - joon in which a vote - trading deal for the right to host the 2018 World Cup in England was discussed. Response to Skripal poisoning See also : Reactions to the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal In response to the March 2018 poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal, British Prime Minister Theresa May announced that no British ministers or members of the royal family would attend the World Cup, and issued a warning to any travelling England fans. Iceland is diplomatically boycotting the World Cup. Russia responded to the comments from the UK Parliament claiming that `` the west are trying to deny Russia the World Cup ''. The Russian Foreign Ministry denounced Boris Johnson 's statements about the 1936 Olympics and the World Cup as `` poisoned with venom of hate, unprofessionalism and boorishness '' and `` unacceptable and unworthy '' parallel towards Russia, a `` nation that lost millions of lives in fighting Nazism ''. The British Foreign Office and MPs had repeatedly warned English football fans and `` people of Asian or Afro - Caribbean descent '' travelling to Russia of `` racist or homophobic intimidation, hooligan violence and anti-British hostility ''. England fans who have travelled have said they have received a warm welcome after arriving in Russia. Terrorist threats Prior to the tournament, ISIS made a threat that they would bomb fans via drones. Information came to light after ISIS members posted video clips and photos on an encrypted app, Telegram. The first threats were in October 2017, when a pro-ISIS page posted a picture of Argentina star Lionel Messi seemingly in a jail cell with blood on his face and a mock up of Nike 's tagline `` Just Do It '' replaced with `` Just Terrorism ''. Broadcasting rights Main article : 2018 FIFA World Cup broadcasting rights FIFA, through several companies, sold the broadcasting rights for the 2018 FIFA World Cup to various local broadcasters. In the United States, the 2018 World Cup is the first men 's World Cup whose English rights will be held by Fox Sports, and Spanish rights held by Telemundo. The elimination of the US national team in qualifying led to concerns that US interest and viewership of this World Cup would be reduced ( especially among `` casual '' viewers interested in the US team ), especially noting how much Fox paid for the rights, and that US games at the 2014 World Cup peaked at 16.5 million viewers. During a launch event prior to the elimination, Fox stated that it had planned to place a secondary focus on the Mexican team in its coverage to take advantage of their popularity among US viewers ( factoring Hispanic and Latino Americans ). Fox stated that it was still committed to broadcasting a significant amount of coverage for the tournament. In February 2018, Ukrainian rightsholder UA : PBC stated that it would not broadcast the World Cup. This came in the wake of growing boycotts of the tournament among the Football Federation of Ukraine and sports minister Ihor Zhdanov. Sponsorship FIFA partners FIFA World Cup sponsors African supporters Asian supporters European supporters Adidas Coca - Cola Gazprom Hyundai -- Kia Qatar Airways VISA Wanda Group Anheuser - Busch InBev Hisense McDonald 's Mengniu Dairy Vivo Egypt -- Experience & Invest Diking Luci Yadea Alfa - Bank Alrosa Rostelecom Russian Railways See also Association football portal Russia portal 2010s portal 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification CONMEBOL CONCACAF AFC UEFA CAF OFC 2022 FIFA World Cup FIFA World Cup hosts Notes Jump up ^ Standard Russian pronunciation is ( tɕɪmjpjɪɐˈnat ˈmjirə pə fʊdˈboɫʊ ˈfiːfə dvjɪˈtɨsjɪtɕɪ vəsjɪmˈnatsətj ) References ^ Jump up to : `` Ethics : Executive Committee unanimously supports recommendation to publish report on 2018 / 2022 FIFA World Cup TM bidding process '' ( Press release ). 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Jump up ^ `` На подготовку транспортной инфраструктуры ЧМ - 2018 в России потрачено 228 млрд '' ( 228 billion spent on preparation of the transport infrastructure of the World Cup 2018 ). sport24.ru ( in Russian ). 3 May 2018. Archived from the original on 1 June 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018. ^ Jump up to : `` Алмазная радиосвязь ''. Газета. Ru ( in Russian ). 30 March 2018. Archived from the original on 1 June 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018. Jump up ^ `` В Мордовии к ЧМ - 2018 прошли классификацию два хостела и мотель ''. info-rm.com. 16 January 2018. Archived from the original on 14 March 2018. Jump up ^ `` Трамвайная линия до стадиона для ЧМ в Самаре готова на 89 % ''. samru.ru. 22 February 2018. Archived from the original on 2 March 2018. Jump up ^ `` Kaliningrad airport 's new terminal put in operation ''. Russian Aviation Insider. 26 July 2017. Archived from the original on 22 May 2018. Retrieved 4 June 2018. Jump up ^ `` В Екатеринбурге увеличились расходы на подготовку к проведению ЧМ - 2018 ''. regnum.ru ( in Russian ). 14 June 2018. Retrieved 16 June 2018. Jump up ^ `` Новый рекорд волонтерской программы ЧМ - 2018 '' ( New record of the Volunteer program of the World Cup 2018 ). welcome2018.com ( in Russian ). 17 January 2017. Archived from the original on 22 August 2017. Retrieved 31 May 2018. Jump up ^ `` Набор волонтеров на ЧМ - 2018 установил новый рекорд Чемпионатов мира '' ( A set of volunteers at the World Cup 2018 set a new World Cup record ) ( in Russian ). FIFA. 17 January 2017. Archived from the original on 1 June 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018. Jump up ^ `` Чемпионат мира по футболу FIFA 2018 в России TM - Волонтерская программа : F.A.Q. '' ( FIFA 2018 World Cup in Russia TM -- Volunteer program : F.A.Q. ) ( in Russian ). FIFA. Archived from the original on 10 October 2016. 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Archived from the original on 16 April 2018. Retrieved 16 April 2018. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to 2018 FIFA World Cup. Wikivoyage has a travel guide for World Cup 2018. FIFA.com 2018 website Welcome2018.com 2018 FIFA World Cup Stages Group stage Group A Group B Group C Group D Group E Group F Group G Group H Knockout stage Final General information Qualification Awards Bids Broadcasting rights Controversies Discipline Officials Opening ceremony Seeding Squads Statistics Official symbols Adidas Telstar 18 ( ball ) `` Live It Up '' ( song ) The Official Album ( album ) Zabivaka ( mascot ) 2018 FIFA World Cup finalists Group A Egypt Russia Saudi Arabia Uruguay Group B Iran Morocco Portugal Spain Group C Australia Denmark France Peru Group D Argentina Croatia Iceland Nigeria Group E Brazil Costa Rica Serbia Switzerland Group F Germany Mexico South Korea Sweden Group G Belgium England Panama Tunisia Group H Colombia Japan Poland Senegal 2018 FIFA World Cup stadiums Kaliningrad Stadium ( Kaliningrad ) Krestovsky Stadium ( Saint Petersburg ) Luzhniki Stadium ( Moscow ) Otkritie Arena ( Moscow ) Kazan Arena ( Kazan ) Nizhny Novgorod Stadium ( Nizhny Novgorod ) Cosmos Arena ( Samara ) Volgograd Arena ( Volgograd ) Mordovia Arena ( Saransk ) Rostov Arena ( Rostov - on - Don ) Fisht Olympic Stadium ( Sochi ) Central Stadium ( Yekaterinburg ) FIFA World Cup Tournaments Uruguay 1930 Italy 1934 France 1938 Brazil 1950 Switzerland 1954 Sweden 1958 Chile 1962 England 1966 Mexico 1970 West Germany 1974 Argentina 1978 Spain 1982 Mexico 1986 Italy 1990 United States 1994 France 1998 South Korea / Japan 2002 Germany 2006 South Africa 2010 Brazil 2014 Russia 2018 Qatar 2022 Canada / Mexico / United States 2026 2030 2034 Qualification 1930 1934 1938 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2014 2018 Finals 1930 1934 1938 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2014 2018 Squads 1930 1934 1938 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2014 2018 Seedings 1998 2002 2006 2014 2018 Broadcasters 1998 2002 2006 2014 2018 Bids 2014 2018 and 2022 2026 2030 Statistics 2002 2006 2014 2018 Disciplinary record 1994 1998 2002 2006 2014 2018 Overall records All - time table Goalscorers top goalscorers finals goalscorers hat - tricks own goals Penalty shoot - outs Player appearances Red cards Referees Team appearances Teams with no appearances Winners Miscellaneous Awards Balls Economics Final draw History Hosts Mascots Official films Official songs Organisers Trophy Video games Notes : There was no qualification for the 1930 World Cup as places were given by invitation only. In 1950, there was no final ; the article is about the decisive match of the final group stage. World championships in 2018 `` 2017 2019 '' Summer sports Archery ( indoor ) Association football ( men ) Athletics ( indoor ) Badminton individual team Basketball women Basketball ( 3x3 ) Beach handball Bowls Boxing ( women ) Cycling road track mountain bike & trials cyclo - cross BMX Floorball ( men ) Fencing Gymnastics artistic rhythmic trampoline acrobatic aerobic Karate Quidditch Rowing Rugby sevens men women Sailing Squash men women 's team Swimming ( 25 m ) Table tennis Volleyball men women Winter sports Bandy men women Curling men women mixed mixed doubles Figure skating Ice hockey men women Ski flying Speed skating allround sprint short track Cue & mind sports Chess open women Darts BDO PDC Snooker six - red Motor sports Air race Endurance racing F1 Powerboat Formula E 2017 -- 18 2018 -- 19 Formula One F2 GP3 Motocross MotoGP Moto2 Moto3 Rally WRC - 2 WRC - 3 Rallycross Speedway individual team Sidecarcross Superbike Supersport Touring car Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2018_FIFA_World_Cup&oldid=846619605 '' Categories : 2018 FIFA World Cup 2018 in association football 2018 in Russian sport Current sports events FIFA World Cup tournaments International association football competitions hosted by Russia June 2018 events in Russia June 2018 sports events in Europe July 2018 events in Russia July 2018 sports events in Europe Hidden categories : CS1 Russian - language sources ( ru ) Webarchive template wayback links Articles with short description Wikipedia semi-protected pages Use dmy dates from June 2018 Articles containing Russian - language text Commons category with local link different than on Wikidata Pages using div col with deprecated parameters Talk View source Contents About Wikipedia Wikinews Wikivoyage Afrikaans Alemannisch Aragonés Asturianu Avañe'ẽ Azərbaycanca تۆرکجه বাংলা Беларуская Беларуская ( тарашкевіца ) ‎ भोजपुरी Български Bosanski Català Čeština Cymraeg Dansk Deutsch Eesti Ελληνικά Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Føroyskt Français Frysk Gaeilge Galego 한국어 Hausa Հայերեն हिन्दी Hrvatski Bahasa Indonesia IsiXhosa Íslenska Italiano עברית ქართული Қазақша Kurdî Кыргызча Лезги Latina Latviešu Lietuvių Limburgs Magyar मैथिली Македонски മലയാളം Malti मराठी მარგალური مصرى مازِرونی Bahasa Melayu Монгол မြန်မာဘာသာ Nederlands नेपाली 日本 語 Norsk ਪੰਜਾਬੀ پنجابی Polski Português Română Runa Simi Русский Scots Shqip සිංහල Simple English Slovenčina Slovenščina کوردی Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska Tagalog தமிழ் Татарча / tatarça తెలుగు ไทย Тоҷикӣ Türkçe Українська اردو ئۇيغۇرچە / Uyghurche Tiếng Việt 吴语 粵語 中文 88 more Edit links This page was last edited on 19 June 2018, at 21 : 43 ( UTC ). 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Question: who is hosting the world cup in 2018
Answer: Russia