The 2018 Russia World Cup organizing committee on Tuesday unveiled five criteria by which 13 cities bidding to host matches will be cut down to 11 by September.
Russia is confining the tournament chiefly to its European territory and plans to group the host cities into five clusters. The issue of which make the final cut has organizers philosophizing.
"The Cheshire Cat answered Alice's question 'which way ought I to go from here?' by saying 'that depends a good deal on where you want to get to.' We need to answer this question for ourselves when it comes to organizing the World Cup," committee director Alexei Sorokin said Tuesday.
The organizing committee is whisking an inspection delegation from governing body FIFA, which has to approve the final list, on a 2 1/2 month tour of the 13 cities beginning April 9, and the final list will be publicized in September, Sorokin said.
Each city will be assessed on its current infrastructural development including the condition of existing arenas, hotels, roads and airports; local living standards, public opinion of the tournament, and the potential for to attract volunteers; the possibility to attract investment; the creativity of its hosting concept; and the potential legacy.
"The leading criterion is the ability to hold a sports festival with all one's heart, ... to show Russian hospitality and how brilliantly, beautifully and with such warmth we can hold the World Cup," Sorokin said.
Another top aim is to "show the whole world that old stereotypes don't exist any more, that Russia is new, that Russia is young, and that Russia is a worthy partner for the world not only in the football arena but in everyday life."
Moscow and St. Petersburg are already guaranteed host city status, while Sochi and Kazan are thought to be certainties because the former will hold the 2014 Winter Olympics and the latter the 2013 Univsersiad.
The remaining seven places will be contested by Kaliningrad, Yaroslavl, Nizhny Novgorod, Samara, Volgograd, Saransk, Rostov, Krasnodar and Yekaterinburg.
Neither Sorokin nor sports minister Vitaly Mutko would be drawn on preferences.
