Moscow // Half-empty stadiums, low TV viewing figures and uninspiring displays by the national team: Russians are struggling to get interested in football with two years to go before they host the 2018 World Cup.
This month a survey conducted by state-controlled pollsters VTsIOM showed the number of people who said they were indifferent to the beautiful game was at 83 per cent.
“Unfortunately it’s a fact,” lamented sports minister Vitaly Mutko to the press. “Our people do not attend the matches or even watch football on TV.”
A large part of the problem getting people to games in Russia appears to be the dire state of the sport’s infrastructure across the nation.
Crumbling stadiums that date back to the Soviet-era where fans are left to face the elements are still common and a big turn-off as clubs battle to boost attendance.
“This season the average attendance of the Premier League matches before the winter break was around 11,000 spectators,” Sergei Pryadkin, who heads Russa’s top league, said in an interview published on its official site.
But a major part of the preparations for the World Cup in 2018 involves building a string of new stadiums or refurbishing existing ones across the country and those running the sport hope new facilities will attract more interest as they open up.
“We believe that the average attendance may double after the new venues start working,” Pryadkin said.
However, while authorities are hoping that a change of scene will help boost crowds at matches – some football lovers in Russia say that the game really needs a change of culture.
“I don’t want to watch football penned in close with a crowd of aggressive numbskulls,” Yevgeny Dmitriyev, 23, a longtime supporter of Spartak Moscow said.
“They’re not interested in the game, they do not love football. All they want to do is to swear, make monkey chants at black footballers and set flares alight.
“Nobody behaves this way at ice hockey, volleyball or basketball games, only the football fans are so intolerable.”
Changing ingrained habits – and the image of watching the game live in the country – may prove a tough task for authorities who often turn a blind eye to the problems in the sport.
While pledging to crackdown on racism ahead of the 2018 World Cup, Russian officials have consistently downplayed the issue despite a string of high-profile incidents involving foreign players.
And even if Russia does get closer to overcoming the barriers off the pitch, it is likely to be events on the field that will shape perceptions of the sport.
Overpayed and underperforming, the Russian national team drew ire from fans during an underwhelming qualifying campaign for this summer’s Euro championship in France that saw them scrape through at the last moment.
Much of the anger was directed at Italian coach Fabio Capello – who was reportedly the highest paid national manager in the game and eventually sacked with a mammoth pay-off as Russia looked like they were not going to make the cut.
“It’s easy to see the effect – no results, no interest,” sports minister Mutko said.
“The team played mediocre football under Capello and the level of public interest gradually fell.”
One glimmer of hope is that the appointment of local manager Leonid Slutksy on a short-term contract to replace Capello immediately appeared to galvanise the squad and they put together a run of wins that saw them through to Euro 2016.
“I’m sure that our people still love football,” Mutko insisted. “They will come back if our team performs well in France.”
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Uefa Champions League semi-finals, first leg
Liverpool v Roma
When: April 24, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Anfield, Liverpool
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 2, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg
Roma 4
Milner (15' OG), Dzeko (52'), Nainggolan (86', 90+4')
Liverpool 2
Mane (9'), Wijnaldum (25')
