FIFA World Cup workforce 70% of population;Almost 98 million

Moscow, June 13: Nearly 70 percent of Russia's population of 140 million will be involved in the preparation and execution of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Speaking on Thursday, Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko however did not explain how the massive workforce would be apportioned out but said jobs would be created through the construction or renovation of 12 World Cup stadiums in 11 Russian host cities.

He noted transportation and tourism infrastructure would be developed over the next three years, also creating jobs.

For example, only Moscow, Sochi, St. Petersburg and Kazan meet the FIFA requirement of 60,000 hotel rooms for host cities, World Cup deputy CEO Alexander Djordjadze said last month.

Yekaterinburg, Kaliningrad, Nizhny Novgorod, Samara, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don and Saransk are lagging behind.

The sports ministry has said it will need $44 billion to organise the FIFA World Cup which runs from June 8 to July 8, 2018. Individual regions have already asked for federal funding to improve antiquated roads and transportation hubs, including airports.

Prime minister Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday told his cabinet the World Cup would cost about $20 billion, with more than half coming from the federal budget.

IANS