Alexei Sorokin, the head of Russia’s World Cup local organising committee, said on Sunday the tournament had so far been a success and that organisers were receiving positive feedback from participants.
“It’s already a great success,” Sorokin told reporters at Moscow’s Luzhniki stadium after Russia beat Spain 4-3 on penalties to make it to the quarterfinals.
“We have had lots of positive reactions from the different teams, fans and delegations. It’s going well. For now, things are good.”
Ahead of the tournament, there were fears that racism and hooliganism could tarnish the World Cup, which Russia is hosting in 11 cities including Moscow, St. Petersburg and Sochi.But since the start, there have been no recorded cases of racism and the fears about hooligan violence have not materialised.