Russia hopes for World Cup boost

ahly1000

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Russia's victory in the race to host the 2018 football World Cup will cost it billions of dollars, but promises some potentially huge long-term benefits.

The country's sheer size and the way it was developed during Soviet times mean that Russia's infrastructure is in dire need of dramatic modernisation.

So 16 stadiums in 13 cities will be either renovated or built from scratch. This alone will cost $3.8bn (£2.4bn), according to an official forecast.

Some estimates suggest that at least twice that amount could be needed to upgrade most airports, to develop high-speed rail services and to build roads and hotels.

There are even analysts who talk about "tens of billions of dollars" in likely spending ahead of the tournament.
 
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