So as to ensure easy recognition both in Russia and around the world, the host cities, FIFA and the Russia 2018 Local Organising Committee have now agreed on the official names.

Eight names make reference to the cities in which the arenas are located. The names of the remaining four stadiums are connected to other local cultural or football aspects. The iconic Luzhniki stadium, the venue hosting the opening and final matches of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, owes its name to the district of Moscow in which it is situated. The other arena located in the Russian capital, Spartak Stadium, bears the name of the highly popular football club to which it belongs.

The Mordovia Arena, in Saransk, is named after the Republic of Mordovia. In 2018, fans from all over world will have the chance to find more about the Mordovians – one of the larger indigenous peoples of Russia, with a rich linguistic and cultural heritage. The Fisht stadium in Sochi is named in honour of the mountain of the same name in the Caucasus – the arena's silhouette resembles the mountain and, in the Adygeyan language, Fisht means white or grey head.

The official names of the stadiums for the 2018 FIFA World Cup are as follows:

∙ Ekaterinburg Arena – Ekaterinburg

∙ Fisht Stadium – Sochi

∙ Kazan Arena – Kazan

∙ Kaliningrad Stadium – Kaliningrad

∙ Luzhniki Stadium; Spartak Stadium – Moscow

∙ Mordovia Arena – Saransk

∙ Nizhny Novgorod Stadium – Nizhny Novgorod

∙ Rostov Arena – Rostov-on-Don

∙ Samara Arena – Samara

∙ Saint Petersburg Stadium – Saint Petersburg

∙ Volgograd Arena – Volgograd

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