MINSK, 13 February (BelTA) – The FIFA World Cup Trophy is displayed at the sports and entertainment complex Falcon Club in Minsk on 13 Fenruary, BelTA informs.
The trophy presentation was held by FIFA representative Lucas Rachow, First Deputy Chairman of the Belarusian Football Federation Sergei Safaryan, and the famous Belarusian football player Alexander Hleb.
“First of all, I would like to thank the Belarusian government and the Football Federation for organizing and holding this event. I would also like to express gratitude to the partners of The Coca-Cola Company which has been holding the FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour since 2006,” Lucas Rachow underlined. During the tour, the trophy will travel to 91 cities across 51 countries, including 24 new countries it has never visited before. This is why those who want to visit the World Cup Trophy will get a unique opportunity.
Natalya Tarasevich, head of The Coca-Cola Company's office in Belarus, said that the visit of the FIFA World Cup will give an impetus to the development of sports, football, in particular. A relevant application has been submitted to FIFA. The Belarusian Football Federation has also sent an application to the FIFA General Secretariat. Thanks to the joint efforts, the goal has been achieved and the World Cup Trophy has been brought to Belarus. Natalya Tarasevich announced some other events to be held in Belarus in the run-up to the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Alexander Hleb, in turn, expressed confidence that today's event will become a great experience for the fans. The trophy presentation was also attended by the famous Belarusian football expert Sergei Borovsky who took part in the 1982 FIFA World Cup as a member of Team USSR. “Every football player remembers every detail of the world forum. I can also remember virtually every minute at the tournament. Back then, I was most impressed by the Brazilian team, although they did not win in the end. The Belarusian fans are the winners just because they can see the main football prize in the world first hand,” the athlete told the media.
The FIFA World Cup Trophy will be displayed in Minsk till 22.00. Then it will be brought to Sofia. The tour will finish in Russia which will host the World Cup for the first time ever. The tournament will take place from 14 June to 15 July in 11 cities across Russia: Moscow, St Petersburg, Kaliningrad, Sochi, Yekaterinburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Volgograd, Kazan, Rostov-on-Don, Samara, and Saransk. The Luzhniki Stadium (Moscow) will host the World Cup final. The tournament will feature 32 teams.
