Oct. 15, 2009
(AP) MOSCOW (AP) - FIFA president Sepp Blatter has reportedly told Vladimir Putin that Russia has a "good chance" of winning the hosting rights to the 2018 or 2022 World Cup.Blatter praises Russia's World Cup bid
Reports: FIFA chief tells Putin that Russia has good chance of hosting World Cup in 2018 or 22
Russian news agencies say Blatter met with the prime minister in Moscow Thursday, and praised Russia's bid.
Russia last week unveiled its bid to host the sport's most prestigious event. It pledged to restrict it to European territory and plow billions of dollars into rundown regions.
Other bidders for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups include England, the United States and Japan, along with joint bids from Spain and Portugal and Netherlands and Belgium. South Korea and Qatar are bidding only for 2022.
The hosts will be announced by FIFA in December 2010.
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