For fans of football, the next two FIFA World Cup events may be two of the most divisive in the history of the sport. Being held in Russia and Qatar, respectively, both events have seen massive scrutiny from the public and professionals.

Concerns exist for the Qatari World Cup around human rights abuses, potential slavery in the building of the stadia, and the weather. For Russia, though, the event has become far more contentious than it should.

As a global superpower with a strong (relatively) economy, and a massive love of football as a nation, Russia is a near-obvious choice to hold a sporting tournament. Concerns over Russian attitudes towards minorities and LGBT individuals, though, is a fair concern – as are concerns over the need to get VISA access to the nation (it won’t be a thing with the visa-free entry during the 2018 World Cup). However, many of the concerns seem to more center around the fact that Russia, as a nation, is not particularly liked.

Many major organizations want to remove the World Cup from Russian hands. Using discussions about football violence, the controversy over doping in Russian sport and the different attitudes within Russian culture have been commonplace since the World Cup was awarded.

Russian Society – Part of the Problem?

One of the major concerns on the run-up to the World Cup has been the fear over how Russia tolerates non-Russian thinking. Painted as introverts who are incapable of blending with other cultures, it’s been very easy to paint Russia – much like Ukraine and Poland in 2012 – as dangerous, uncouth places.

The main concern – and legitimate concern – is that of Russian national response to LGBT people. This is a major problem, and something that does have to be addressed clearly by the government on the run-up to the World Cup beginning.

Football is a sport that brings people together; the idea that anyone should feel excluded by the event being in Russia has to be crushed. This is not a healthy situation to be in, as it creates a massive distrust before the event begins.

Other World Cup events have been met with the same skepticism on the build-up from reputable sources and other governments. Rarely does anything happen.

The idea that Russian people are incapable of welcoming other guests from other nations and cultures for the World Cup is, frankly, an absurd notion.

Russian Doping Scandal

Since the onset of the battle with the International Olympic Commission and WADA over the Russian doping scandal, Russia has been seen as a pariah in the international sporting community. It’s easy to see why, too; this has been a stain on Russian sport.

However, there has been no official movement to see Russia hosting the 2018 World Cup to be removed just yet. These battles, though, only help to strengthen Russian resolve to make the tournament as effective as possible.

What was supposed to de-rail support for the World Cup has only helped to embolden national support for it.

Lack of Evidence Against Russia

In 2015, the FBI confirmed that they were investigating the voting process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cup tournaments. The fear was that votes had been bought and that the winners had only done so through illicit means.

As of December 2016, none of the evidence that Domenico Scala, FIFA Audit and Compliance Committee Officer, has been brought forward. As it stands, much of the reasons why companies want Russia to be vetoed from the World Cup hosting process is down to political positions, or have since been corrected by Russian policy, such as the VISA issue.

Could the 2018 World Cup Be Removed from Russia?

With just over a year to go until the tournament, moving it now would be catastrophic.

There is far more scope for the 2022 World Cup to be moved instead. It holds far more logistical problems, namely the weather, meaning that it could be moved aside. The discussion about the human rights abuse within the nation also pose interesting questions about where the next steps should come from when it comes to Qatari involvement in the sport.

For Russia, though? It has the transport and infrastructure to handle massive numbers of people arriving. VISA laws can be relaxed, too, meaning that one of the major concerns can be allayed. Sporting excellence when it comes to football is clear to see – the Russian Premier League is one of the top leagues on the European circuit.

Fans love football in the nation, and they hold the sport in the highest of regards. For that reason, Russian football could stand to benefit from the extra infrastructure being included on top of what is already a strong candidate. As one of the most powerful nations on the planet, and a growing powerhouse of European football, Russia hosting a World Cup should not be seen as strange in any way, shape or form.

Besides, they have invested massive sums of money into the stadia, transport infrastructure and other major elements of the platform. This should not be disregarded; Russia will host the 2018 World Cup. All the saber-rattling in political circles should not be enough to derail what is a powerful and rich nation from hosting a tournament it more than has the capacity to host.

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Russia has to do far less work than the last two hosts, Brazil and South Africa, to get their nation in order. The general dislike for Russia that lives in so many circles aside, why would they not be a good host for the World Cup?

The 2012 UEFA European Championships were surrounded by stories of ‘Nazi gangs’ and racist killings taking place. Not only major incident took place in either Ukraine or Poland. The South African World Cup – and 2014 in Brazil – were littered with stories and warnings of traveling to these nations. They were painted as hellholes, never fit to hold a sporting tournament…

Russia is in the best position since Germany 2006 to host a tournament – the idea it could be taken from them is, frankly, ludicrous.

The sheer logistical nightmare that would be a move at this time is both illogical and unrealistic.

To place such a massive burden on another nation with so little time left would be unique in these circumstances.

Do we think the 2018 World Cup in Russia will go ahead? Yes, we sure do.