2016 FIFA Extraordinary Congress such as the presidency. The deadline for candidates to formally present their nominations, with support of at least of five national federations, was 26 October 2015, 23:59 CET (22:59 GMT). Sepp Blatter was also a likely candidate, despite him saying that "I will not be a candidate for the election in 2016." Blatter previously said that he is "not resigning" before the announcement of the election date. On 28 October 2015, FIFA announced the names of the seven candidates to replace Sepp Blatter as its president. On 9 November 2015, the Ad-hoc Electoral Committee admitted and declared five candidates eligible
Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup bid Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup bid Russia announced its intent to bid for the FIFA World Cup in early 2009, and submitted its request to FIFA in time. Russia's President Vladimir Putin has taken a keen interest in the bid and has gone so far as ordering Vitaly Mutko, the Minister of Sports, to "prepare a bid for Russia to hold the 2018 World Cup". According to a report earlier submitted by Vitaly Mutko, who also served that time as President of the Russian Football Union (RFU), the country is ready to spend some $10 billion on the tournament. The