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Eastern contender Russian soccer looking to brighter futurePosted: Tuesday December 03, 2002 10:22 AMMOSCOW (Reuters) -- Russia, bidding to become the first nation from eastern Europe to host the European Championship for 32 years, has a long and proud soccer history. Its predecessor, the Soviet Union, won the first version of these championships, then called the European Cup, in 1960 and reached the final four years later. The Soviets were also runners-up in 1972 and 1988, and made the last four in 1968. They also won two Olympic titles, in Melbourne in 1956 and Seoul in 1988. But their achievements in the World Cup look far less impressive. A semifinal showing at the 1966 World Cup in England is still their best. The country has also produced its share of outstanding players, including the great Lev Yashin, voted the best goalkeeper of the 20th century in many end-of-century polls two years ago. Yashin, a member of four World Cup squads from 1958 to 1970, was also named European Footballer of the Year in 1963 and is still the only goalkeeper to have won the award. He died of cancer in 1990 at the age of 60. English sailors The Russians first took up football in the late 19th century when it was brought into the country by English sailors and factory workers. The first known team was formed in St Petersburg in 1886. By the early 1900s, football had begun to spread to Moscow and other Russian cities. In 1912, Russia joined FIFA and also held its first national championship with four teams, Moscow, St Petersburg, Kiev and Kharkiv, taking part. After the Bolshevik revolution in 1917, football gradually became the country's most popular sport, as the Soviets began treating football as THE game for the working classes. The first Soviet championship took place in 1922, but club sides only began competing more than a decade later, with Dynamo Moscow winning the inaugural tournament in the spring of 1936, Dynamo Kiev and Spartak Moscow finishing second and third. The last two, however, went on to become the most successful Soviet clubs of all time, winning 13 and 12 titles respectively. But the break-up of the Soviet empire at the end of 1991 also heralded the demise of Russian football. The Russians were now missing many talented players from other former Soviet republics and have struggled in the international arena over the last decade. They failed to qualify for the 1998 World Cup in France as well as for Euro 2000 and made a dismal showing at this year's World Cup finals in Japan and South Korea. Russia coach Oleg Romantsev returned home to widespread criticism following the side's quick exit from what was regarded as one of the easiest first-round groups. But the Russians have made a flying start in the Euro 2004 qualifying campaign, winning their first two matches and their bid for the 2008 European championships reflects their hopes for a brighter future. The only eastern European country to host the European finals was Yugoslavia in 1976 when the final round consisted of just four teams. The Russians believe their turn is long overdue. Security concerns overshadow Russia's 2008 bidMOSCOW (Reuters) -- Russia is bidding to become the first East European country to stage a major international soccer competition and officials are confident it stands a good chance of success despite serious post-Soviet security issues. The Russians say they will have eight first-class stadiums in eight different cities across central and southern regions of the world's largest country ready to host Euro 2008. Although officials acknowledge that all the stadiums except Moscow's Luzhniki and Lokomotiv -- being pencilled as an alternate site -- exist only on paper, they have promised that construction will be finished on time. "Awarding the European championship to Russia will provide a huge boost not only for our soccer infrastructure but for the country's economy as a whole," Vladimir Radionov, secretary general of the Russian Football Union (RFU), told Reuters. "It will be a great motivational factor for all of us to build first-class stadiums, hotels, airports, etc. not only in Moscow but in seven other Russian cities as well. "It will create hundreds of thousands of jobs, bring in enormous financial benefits into the country and will improve the whole infrastructure of our cities," he said. "And the after-effects from Euro 2008 will not only benefit those eight cities, but will be felt in Siberia, the Urals, Russia's Far East -- all over the country." Russia's bid director Alexander Chernov added: "We're confident that we can sell out every single game, starting from the group matches all the way to the final." The plan calls for the 84,000-seat Luzhniki stadium to host the opening game, one of the semifinals and the final, with St Petersburg's Kirov arena to stage another semifinal. Luzhniki, given a five-star rating by UEFA three years ago, has hosted a number of major sporting events, including the 1980 Olympic soccer final and the 1999 UEFA Cup final. Rocky start Russia's Euro 2008 campaign, however, got to a rocky start 12 months ago when the RFU chiefs first gave up on the idea of bidding for the championship after failing to secure financial guarantees from the government at the first attempt. But earlier this year, the Russian parliament finally approved a bill with 258 votes out of 450 in favor of the bid. Experts estimate the project would cost Russian taxpayers at least 1.3 billion euros to stage the 16-team competition, but Chernov said they expect the tournament to generate over 70 million euros in profits. RFU president Vyacheslav Koloskov views a joint bid from Austria and Switzerland as the main threat: "The bid from the two Alpine countries remains our biggest worry." The Russians also acknowledge that security has become a major concern following tragic events in the capital just over a month ago. Hostage siege More than 100 people died in a hostage siege in October after troops stormed a Moscow theatre taken by Chechen guerrillas. UEFA President Lennart Johansson has underlined security as a major issue in the bidding process, referring to serious crowd trouble before and after last month's UEFA Cup tie between Turkey's Fenerbahce and Panathinaikos of Greece and the Moscow siege. "... There was also this terrible hostage drama in Moscow. That will also be taken into consideration for the final decision," Johansson was quoted as saying in Swiss-French newspaper Le Dimanche last month. The Swede, however, later denied making such remarks and was quick to assure bidding nations that all the bids would be treated equally. "Contrary to recent media reports, all bids for hosting of Euro 2008 will have the same chance of success when the final decision is made," he said in a statement from UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland. No matter what has been said, Russian soccer chiefs remain confident about their country's chances. "No country is immune from terrorists," former Russian Prime Minister Sergei Stepashin, who heads the country's co-ordinating committee for Euro 2008, was quoted as saying by local media. "The main thing is that we must learn our lessons and prevent such threats in the future." "We have an 80 percent chance of hosting the European championship in 2008," added Koloskov after meeting with Johansson last month. "Our main task is to show the members of the UEFA executive committee that Russia are very capable of hosting the event." Factbox: VENUES: The following eight venues are planned:
COST: Russia has budgeted 1.33 billion euros to stage the event but expects to make profits of more than 70 million euros. FOOTBALL SET-UP: The first Soviet championship took place in 1922, but club sides only began competing more than a decade later. The Russian championship was founded in 1992 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Top clubs: Spartak Moscow, who have won nine Russian title in the last 10 years, including six in a row from 1996, Lokomotiv Moscow, CSKA Moscow and Dynamo Moscow. FOOTBALL HONORS (Soviet Union/Russia): European champions: 1960; Olympic champions: 1956, 1988; European Championship runners-up: 1964, 1972, 1988; World Under-20 champions: 1977; World Under-17 champions: 1987; European Under-21 champions: 1990. CLUBS: Russia has 154 professional clubs and 782,500 registered players at all levels, including 3,500 professional, 469,000 amateur and 310,000 youth players. PREVIOUS HISTORY: The 1980 Summer Olympics were staged in Moscow as well as numerous World Championships in Ice Hockey (the latest in 2000 in St Petersburg), and Swimming in 2002 (Moscow). Main football tournaments: 1980 Olympic tournament; 1985 World Under-20 Championships. POLITICAL SITUATION: Russian society, long thought to have become more stable since President Vladimir Putin came to power in 2000, took a huge jolt with the seizure in October by armed Chechen militants of a Moscow theatre. A total of 129 hostages and 41 rebels died when security forces used incapacitating gas to storm the theatre. The country's southern rim, in and near Chechnya, is frequently the site of explosions and shootings. Other regions are generally quiet, though contract killings of businessmen and politicians have occurred in Moscow and other cities.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. |
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