FIFA to name 2018 World Cup host cities

Moscow - Two Russian cities from an initial list of 13 candidates to host the 2018 World Cup are to be dropped as football’s governing body FIFA announces the final locations for the tournament.

Russia will stages the competition for the first time in 2018, and will do so at 12 arenas in 11 cities.

Eight cities, including Moscow, St. Petersburg and Sochi, are all but guaranteed to remain on the list, which is to be announced live on Russian television.

But Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko earlier this month warned the cities of Saransk, Volgograd, Yaroslavl, Kaliningrad and Rostov-on-Don had “several problems” that may kill their bid.

“For the cities that miss out, this doesn’t mean that somebody didn’t do their job,” Mutko said in televised comments. “We want to show a new Russia, a developed Russia.”

Moscow should host the final at a refurbished Luzhniki Stadium, with proposed new arenas for Dynamo and Spartak hoping to share the capital’s World Cup fixtures.

St. Petersburg is likely to be given a semi-final at Zenit’s new stadium, which should be completed by 2014.

Sochi is expected to host games in the Fisht Olympic Stadium that will be used for the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Games.

Russia beat England and joint bids from Spain and Portugal and the Netherlands and Belgium to win right to stage the event.