KEIR RADNEDGE in MOSCOW: Nikita Simonyan, in football terms, was the most significant member of the VVIP and VIP phalanx present at the Opening Match of the 2018 World Cup finals between hosts Russia and Saudi Arabia.

Simonyan, now 91, scored the first goal on the old Soviet Union’s debut in the World Cup finals in a 2-2 draw with England in Group Four of the 1958 tournament in Gothenburg, Sweden. In all he scored 10 goals in 20 internationals for the Soviet Union and is now first vice-president of the Russian Football Union.

He was accompanied in the high-profile seats by the likes of President Vladimir Putin, a dozen other state presidents, all the senior members of the world football federation FIFA (led by president Gianni Infantino) and a wide range of further personalities from politics and the arts and football.

Notable among their absence were political leaders and heads of state from western Europe and north America.

Heads of State and government officials:

Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation

Dmitry Medvedev, Prime Minister of the Russian Federation

Nikol Pashinyan, Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia

Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan

Alexander Lukashenko, President of the Belarus Republic

Evo Morales, President of Bolivia

Kim Yongnam, Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

Nursultan Nazarbayev, President of the Rep. Kazakhstan

Sooronbay Jeenbekov, President of Kyrgyzstan

Saad Hariri, Prime Minister of Lebanon

Igor Dodon, President of Moldova

Mario Abdo Benitez, President of Paraguay

Juan Carlos Varela, President of Panama

Paul Kagame, President of Rwanda

Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia

Emomali Rahmon, President of Tajikistan

Shavkat Mirziyoyev, President of Uzbekistan

FIFA:

Gianni Infantino, FIFA President

Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, FIFA Council member

David Gill, FIFA Council member

Alejandro Dominguez,FIFA Council member

Victor Montagliani FIFA Council member

Aleksander Ceferin, FIFA Council member

Ahmad, FIFA Council member

Sandor Csanyi, FIFA Council member

Sunil Gulati, FIFA Council member

Lydia Nsekera, FIFA Council member

Tarek Bouchamaoui, FIFA Council member

Constant Omari, FIFA Council member

HRH Prince Abdullah, FIFA Council member

Kohzo Tashima, FIFA Council member

Sonia Bien-Aime, FIFA Council member

Fernando Sarney, FIFA Council member

Pedro Chaluja, FIFA Council member

Luis Hernandez, FIFA Council member

Evelina Christillin, FIFA Council member

Sandra Fruean, FIFA Council member

Almamy Kabele Camara, FIFA Council member

Ramon Jesurun, FIFA Council member

Reinhard Grindel,FIFA Council member

Dejan Savicevic, FIFA Council member

Mahfuza Kiron Akhter, FIFA Council member

Mariano Araneta, FIFA Council member

Mong Gyu Chung, FIFA Council member

Jian Zhang, FIFA Council member

Georgios Koumas, FIFA Council member

Maria Sol Munoz, FIFA Council member

Fatma Samoura, FIFA Secretary General

Zvonimir Boban, FIFA Deputy Secretary General

Marco Villiger, FIFA Deputy Secretary General

Local Organising Committee:

Arkady Dvorkovich, LOC Chairman

Alexey Sorokin, LOC CEO

FIFA World Cup Ambassadors:

Ilya Averbukh, figure skater

Sergey Belogolovtsev, actor and TV-Host

Mikhail Boyarsky, cinema and theatre actor

Vasily Gerello, opera singer, Mariinsky Theatre soloist

Valery Gergiev, conductor, Mariinsky Theatre Art./General Director

Denis Matsuev, piano player, People’s Artist of Russia, Russian Federation State Prize laureate

Sergey Svetlakov, actor and producer

Sergey Semak, former Russian national team captain, FC Zenit head coach

Nikita Simonyan, Soviet football legend, Russian Football Union first vice-president

Zara, singer

Other distinguished guests:

René Fasel, IIHF President

Josep Maria Bartomeu, FC Barcelona President

Placido Domingo, Opera Singer

plus various ‘FIFA legends’

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