Blatter praises Russia's World Cup soccer bid
Posted Oct 15, 2009 5:10 PM
MOSCOW -FIFA president Sepp Blatter told Vladimir Putin that Russia has a "good chance" of winning the hosting rights to the 2018 or 2022 World Cup soccer.
Blatter praised Russia's bid in a meeting with the prime minister in Moscow on Thursday.
"The documents I have seen command respect, and if you continue with such intent you have good chances," Blatter said.
Russia last week unveiled its bid to land soccer's most prestigious event. It pledged to restrict it to European territory and plow billions of dollars into rundown regions.
Other bidders for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups include England, the United States and Japan, along with joint bids from Spain and Portugal and Netherlands and Belgium. South Korea and Qatar are bidding for 2022 only.
The hosts will be announced in December 2010.
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2009-10-15 17:44:39
