'We're just trying to survive it': Russian cities brace for World Cup
The Russian prazdnik – celebration – must not be ruined at any price as hosts prepare to give enemies five-star treatment
On a riverboat between the World Cup cities of Kazan and Samara last month, a Russian couple in their 50s asked earnestly whether “all these rumours” about Moscow’s poisoning of Sergei Skripal could lead the west to boycott or cancel the tournament.
“Russians don’t surrender to pressure like that, we push back hard,” said Yevgeny Prigov, a hefty businessman who trades in machine parts, echoing a popular Russian cliche.
Their belief, summarised, was that the west wants to see Russia fall on its face when it hosts the World Cup this month, and that Russia would pull it off in spite of its guests.
