By Andrew Warshaw in Moscow
June 13 – He stayed away in 2010 when Russia won the vote as a sign of respect for FIFA, flying into Zurich only after the result became public.
By Samindra Kunti in Moscow
June 13 – On the eve of the World Cup, tickets remain for 19 of the 48 group matches, including England’s opening match against Tunisia. Last week FIFA announced 2.4 million tickets had been sold for the tournament.
June 11 – The CIES Football Observatory has ranked teams participating in the Russia 2018 World Cup by their transfer values. Top of the table are France with a total squad value of €1.41 billion.
June 8 – FIFA has announced that 2.4 million tickets have already been sold for the World Cup, which kicks off next Thursday. International demand accounts for 54%. On Friday evening, the governing body will release another batch of 100,000 tickets.
June 8 – FIFA has reiterated that referees will have the power to suspend games at the World Cup in cases of persistent discrimination by the crowd.
June 8 – With the World Cup on the doorstep, Russian President Vladimir Putin has urged the eleven host cities to take advantage on the tournament and deliver a strong footballing legacy after the finals.
June 7 – World Cup hosts invariably go into World Cups with at least a modicum of optimism but Russia is going to need all the help it can get to progress from the group stage and prevent the tournament taking a massive early hit.
June 7 – England manager Gareth Southgate (pictured) says his squad have a plan to deal with any outbreaks of discrimination at the World Cup after fullback Danny Rose said he had told his family not to come to Russia for fear of racism.
June 7 – Dinamo St Petersburg will move to the Fisht Stadium in Sochi next season as the World Cup venue seeks to shed its tag of white elephant.
June 6 – Iran were the first team to arrive in Russia ahead of the 2018 World Cup, which kicks off next week. The Iranians have been paired in group B with Spain, Portugal and Morocco, but their preparations have been blighted by logistical problems.
May 30 – England players have discussed the prospect of racism during the World Cup amid concerns that Russian fans might target its black players.
By Paul Nicholson
May 23 – Russian players selected for duty at this summer’s World Cup finals have all been cleared to play. FIFA has confirmed that there are no anti-doping cases being pursued against any players named in Russia’s provisional squad for their home World Cup.
May 17 – The Argentine Football Association has apologised for the publication of a World Cup manual that included advice on how to seduce Russian women.
May 15 – Peru’s joy has quickly turned to disappointment after captain Paolo Guerrero was ruled out of the World Cup after his doping ban, which had just expired, was increased from six to 14 months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
May 14 – Peru’s football federation have confirmed captain Paolo Guerrero has been selected in the team’s World Cup squad despite an appeal by anti-doping authorities to have his ban for a positive test increased.