FIFA head Sepp Blatter met Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Friday to discuss Russia's bid to host either the 2018 or the 2022 World Cup.
Russia's bid, which was officially launched last October, has the full support of the government, with a high-level steering committee established under First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov.
"Football is the most popular type of sport," Medvedev said. "People love it everywhere. It's not surprising then that they love it in Russia."
"Even today, when it is minus 25 [degrees Celsius] outside, people are playing football," he went on.
Although this was Blatter's the first meeting with the Russian president, world football's top bureaucrat visited the country last October and, during a meeting with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, gave his support to Russia's bid.
"I believe that the World Cup should leave a legacy, and this idea is coming to life here in Russia. That is why I feel a whole-hearted affinity for the Russian bid," Blatter said.
Blatter was slightly more reserved on Friday, however, expressing praise and admiration for the development of the sport in Russia, as well as regret that the national team had not made it to this summer's World Cup finals. Russia, Euro 2008 semi-finalists, were surprisingly knocked out in the play-offs for the 2010 World Cup by Slovenia.
While Russia is officially bidding for either the 2018 or 2022 tournament, FIFA's continent rotation policy means that Europe is likely to host the event four years after Brazil in 2014.
Russia has seven competitors to host the 2018 World Cup, including England, Australia and joint bids from Belgium and the Netherlands and Spain and Portugal. A decision on the hosts for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments will be made in December.
MOSCOW, January 22 (RIA Novosti)
