Infantino vows crackdown on racism

FIFA President Gianni Infantino vowed on Monday to crack down hard on racist incidents when Russia hosts the World Cup next year.

"This is a very high priority and we will make sure no incidents will happen," Infantino said in a video statement.

"It is absolutely not tolerable and we will be very, very firm on that, so we can expect fair play in Russia."

Racism became especially pronounced in Russian football with the influx of foreign players that occurred after the Iron Curtain fell and the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.

Brazilian striker Hulk said he heard monkey chants at "almost every match" when he led Zenit Saint Petersburg to a title and two second-place finishes between 2012 and 2016.

Infantino said the 2018 World Cup will be the first at which referees will be allowed to halt or even abandon matches should anything similar happen during matches.

"We expect fair play in Russia," he said.

He was speaking ahead of Friday's draw for the World Cup in the concert hall of the Kremlin.