Putin did not confirm yet if he will attend the World Cup in Qatar. 

FIFA President Gianni Infantino met with the Russia’s President Vladimir Putin on Monday, where the two discussed 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia and preparations for next year’s World Cup in Qatar.

However, the Russian president did not confirm whether he will be attending the World Cup 2022 in Qatar, Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday.

“We still do not know about the format of the championship’s organisation since the situation [regarding COVID-19] keeps changing, therefore the format of the tournament’s organisation will be finalised closer to the start of the [2022 FIFA] World Cup. This is why this issue was not discussed,” Peskov told the media.

However, “there will be hardly any difficulties” in visiting the host nation during the historic event, he added.

The FIFA president praised Russia’s president and the national Football Union for endorsing football’s foundations for success and “using the power of football to promote diversity on and around the pitch.”

“Russia is a very proud footballing nation and captured the hearts of many more fans in 2018,” he added. 

He noted that “Russia and the Russian people left an extremely positive impression in everyone’s mind after the tournament. This is certainly a long lasting legacy of the World Cup held here three years ago.”

Read also: Qatar to provide one million Covid-19 vaccines for World Cup fans

In Qatar, the long-awaited tournament next year will take place between November 21 and December 18 at eight state-of-the-art stadiums built and dedicated for the big event.

In 2010, the Gulf state became the first ever Arab country to win the right to host the World Cup tournament.

FIFA officially announced that the tournament will be played during the winter season for the first time due to extreme humidity and heat levels in the summer months in Doha.

Qatar has undertaken many infrastructure and construction projects ahead of the event, such as the building of multiple World Cup stadiums and other projects, including the metro system and the an expansion of the Hamad International Airport.

Qatar has repeatedly said it is planning to host a Covid-free World Cup, and this week said it will provide one million shots of the vaccine to international spectators flocking to the country.

Authorities have stressed that fans will not be allowed to enter stadiums without receiving the full doses of the vaccine.