2018 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony

The 2018 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony took place on Thursday, 14 June 2018, at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia[1] at 3:30 (BST), about a half hour before the opening match which Russia won 5–0 over Saudi Arabia.[2][3]

2018 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony
Aida Garifullina and Robbie Williams performing on stage.
Date14 June 2018 (2018-06-14)
Time17:30 Moscow Standard Time (UTC+3)
LocationLuzhniki Stadium, Moscow, Russia
FIFA World Cup opening ceremonies
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Mascots
Zabivaka™ (left) and Ronaldo (right) were mascots for the opening ceremony.

Zabivaka™ (English: "The one who scores"), was the official mascot for the 2018 FIFA World Cup and was voted for by a 53% margin. The design is of a wolf who represents fun, charm, and character.[4] Former world cup winning, Brazilian striker Ronaldo was another mascot of the tournament. Ronaldo was the intended man to deliver the ceremonial first kick of the tournament but instead, he gave that honor to the child mascot who passed the official match ball to Zabivaka™ in order to start the tournament. The match ball (an Adidas Telstar 18) was sent into space with the International Space Station crew in March and came back to Earth in early June.[5]

Speeches
Russian President Vladimir Putin giving the opening speech of the tournament.

Russian President Vladimir Putin gave the opening speech of the tournament in which he talked about an "open, hospitable and friendly" Russia hosting the tournament. He also described Russia's love for football, calling the tournament and the game "a unity which cannot be affected by a different language, ideology or faith". Putin ended by saying:

“Our duty is to preserve this power of humanity for generations to come for the sake of developing sports and strengthening peace and mutual understanding between people. I wish all the teams’ success and an unforgettable experience for the fans. Welcome to Russia.”

Putin's speech was immediately followed by a short speech from FIFA President Gianni Infantino who said:

“Welcome to the FIFA World Cup here in Russia. As of today, for one month, football will conquer Russia and from Russia, football will conquer the world. Enjoy the biggest celebration on earth. Thank you President Putin, thank you Moscow, Spasibo [thank you] Russia.”

Following the two speeches the performance of the ceremony were allowed to commence before the opening match between Russia and Saudi Arabia.[6][7][8]

Performances
British singer Robbie Williams and Russian soprano Aida Garifullina performing "Angels" at the World Cup opening ceremony.

British pop singer Robbie Williams took centre stage at the end of the ceremony with a rendition of "Let Me Entertain You" before Russian soprano Aida Garifullina was carried out on to the pitch on the back of a "firebird" float. Williams sang a section of "Feel" before he and Garifullina performed a duet of "Angels" as performers emerged, dressed in the flags of all 32 teams and carrying a sign bearing the name of each nation. Williams then sang "Rock DJ" in an encore as the pitch was being cleared for the first match.[9]

Controversy

During the encore, Williams gave the middle finger.[10] Fox in the US apologised for the incident.[10] The incident was not shown on ITV in the UK who had cut away prior to the encore.[10] In addition, while singing Rock DJ, Williams sung, "Pimpin' ain't easy. Most of them fleece me, but I did this for free." The lyrics "But I did this for free" replaced the lyrics "Every night".

Williams appeared on This Morning on 19 June and explained what happened, “It was one minute to kick off, I was under a lot of pressure, because there was one minute left and I didn't know how I was going to do half a minute, so I just did a one-minute countdown [using his middle finger].” Asked by presenter Phillip Schofield whether he regrets it, he said: "Yeah, of course, yeah. I cannot trust me. And the last thing I said to my manager before we sat down on the sofa here was, 'what could go wrong,' because I don't know what I'm going to do at any time. There's no, sort of, plan. The plan was, sing in key, don't fall over. That was the plan and 99% of the plan, I pulled off.” When asked did the idea just enter his head he responded, “Nothing actually pops into my head. There's a block between me and sense... then something happens and then five minutes later, I'm like, 'Did I? Yeah, I did, didn't I?”.[11] Williams changing his lyrics "every night" is still unexplained.

Dignitaries in attendance
Moldovan President Igor Dodon at the opening ceremony.

A total of 21 foreign heads of state attended this match. It was the largest gathering of leaders for a FIFA World Cup match.

References
  1. Tirkey, Joy (13 June 2018). "FIFA World Cup, Opening Ceremony: When And Where To Watch, Live Coverage On TV, Live Streaming Online". NDTV Sports. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
  2. "World Cup 2018 Opening Ceremony: What time will it start and when will Robbie Williams feature?". The Telegraph. 13 June 2018. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
  3. "Robbie Williams show at World Cup opening ceremony is too short to ever be dull". Guardian. 14 June 2018. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
  4. FIFA.com. "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ - News - Wolf chosen as 2018 FIFA World Cup Official Mascot and named Zabivaka™ - FIFA.com". www.fifa.com. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  5. "World Cup 2018: Ronaldo and Robbie Williams star in opening ceremony". June 14, 2018. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  6. "Putin welcomes fans to 'open, hospitable and friendly' World Cup during opening ceremony ?". The Independent. June 14, 2018. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  7. "President Putin's speech at the 2018 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony at Luzhniki Stadium, 14 June 2018". Посольство России в Великобритании (in Russian). Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  8. "Vladimir Putin gives a speech at the World Cup opening ceremony - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)". mobile.abc.net.au. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  9. "World Cup 2018: Ronaldo and Robbie Williams star in opening ceremony". BBC. 14 June 2018.
  10. "Fox apologises for Williams gesture". BBC News. 15 June 2018. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  11. "Robbie Williams explains why he gave planet Earth the middle finger at the World Cup". Digital Spy. 21 June 2018.
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