ID policy pays off as fans live the dream
Xiang Guozheng, a 31-year-old soccer fan from China, watched his first World Cup game live on June 19 in Moscow, fulfilling a lifelong ambition.
“I always dreamed about watching a World Cup match and enjoying the crazy atmosphere with fans from all over the world. Now I have realized my dream,” he said.
Despite the absence of the Chinese national team in soccer’s global showpiece this year, Xiang still managed to buy tickets using his fan ID and flew to the largest country in the world with three friends, who also work and live in Beijing.
Like Xiang, many Chinese tourists have flown to Russia to watch matches.
According to Russia’s Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media, more than 60,000 Chinese fans have bought tickets for the tournament.
“I did not hesitate at all when hearing the news that if I bought a World Cup ticket and obtained a fan ID I would be able to visit Russia without a visa,” Xiang said.
Speaking before Portugal, Spain and Argentina crashed out of the tournament, Xiang said, “But it takes time when I choose the matches I am going to watch, because those involving some favorite teams, such as Portugal, Spain, Brazil and Argentina are too difficult to buy on the official FIFA website, so we chose the match between Poland and Senegal.”
Aleksey Tikhnenko, head of the hotel management department at Moscow’s Department of Sport and Tourism, said that with Xiang and his friends joining thousands of others from all over the world in Russia, Moscow expects to host up to 1 million supporters from different countries during the tournament.
Russian authorities said they also expect to see an increase in tourists at other World Cup venues, including Saint Petersburg, Sochi, Volgograd and Samara.
“The fan ID policy is most attractive for fans like me to decide whether to come to Russia,” Xiang said. “Getting a visa can be a headache for tourists, but with the fan ID, which I acquired after buying the World Cup ticket, I’m able to travel in Russia without a visa.”
World Cup organizers are expecting 570,000 overseas fans and 700,000 Russian supporters to attend World Cup matches, giving the tourism sector, including hotels and restaurants, a huge boost.
According to a report from credit rating agency Moody’s, the Russian government started to prepare for the World Cup and the arrival of tourists from all over the world years ago.
Massive construction projects carried out in World Cup host cities had the greatest impact on the economy in 2016 and last year, said Alexei Zabotkin, head of investment strategy at VTB Capital.
The Moscow Times reported that Russia is expected to have spent 883 billion rubles ($14.2 billion) on hosting the event. It also invested 683 billion rubles on transportation infrastructure, stadium construction and accommodation.
“Moscow airports are among the key beneficiaries in the transport sector because upgraded facilities will support higher passenger flows, even after the event,” Moody’s said.
The report added that the official budget for the tournament had been amended 12 times since Russia won the bid in 2010 to host it, showing the high level of attention paid by the Russian government to soccer.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is confident that the investments will pay off.
He said in June that infrastructure spending had to reap rewards and that stadiums would not be allowed to become “flea markets” after the tournament.
Yaroslav Lissovolik, chief economist at the Eurasian Development Bank, said the key task for Russia is to maintain the tourism increase as well as economic growth after the World Cup.
“The question is to what extent will Russia be able to use the opportunities provided by the World Cup to raise its economic growth potential through better infrastructure and better worldwide recognition,” Lissovolik said.