World Cup opening ceremony: All you need to know | The Daily Star
04:13 PM, June 13, 2018 / LAST MODIFIED: 08:42 PM, June 14, 2018

World Cup opening ceremony: All you need to know

The opening ceremony of the 2018 FIFA World Cup starts on 8:30 pm Bangladesh Standard Time. The opening match between Russia and Saudi Arabia will begin at 9:00 pm Bangladesh Standard Time.

The greatest show on the earth will begin today with the opening ceremony of the World Cup and ahead of the grand festivities Russia prepared to show off their culture and traditions through dancers, performers and other big-name headline acts in front of the world.

The opening ceremony will take place 30 minutes prior to the matchbetweenRussia and Saudi Arabia in the Luzhniki Stadium at Moscow --the national stadium and also the largest stadium in Russia with a seating capacity of 80,000. The final will also be hosted at Luzhniki stadium where stars such as Red Hot Chili Peppers, Michael Jackson, Madonna and Metallica have performed in the past.

Bizarrely, UK pop star Robbie Williams will be performing at the opening ceremony, which is being curated by Russia's Channel One, as well as renowned soprano Aida Garifullina.

Around 500 dancers, gymnasts and trampolinists will also be performing in an opening extravaganza that will pay homage to all things Russian.

Ronaldo, hero for Brazil at the 2002 World Cup, will also feature in World Cup 2018 opening ceremony representing "the football glory that all players will be hoping to achieve on Russian soil" according to FIFA.Saudi crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman is in the meantime in Kremlin to attend the opening.

In addition to the ceremony taking place at the Luzhniki Stadium, there will be another concert occurring at the Red Square in Moscow where stars such as Placido Dominguez and Juan Diego Flores will perform.

"It is interesting that football events are usually opened by opera stars, because classical music is a universal code understood by residents of every country," said the tournament organisers.

Pianist Denis Matsuev, global opera stars Anna Netrebko, YusifEivazov, IldarAbdrazakov, and Albina Shagimuratova are among the Russian stars on show.

Live It Up, the official song of the Russia World Cup is also expected to be performed at the opening ceremony.

 

 

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