The 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup will be the 10th FIFA Confederations Cup, a quadrennial international men’s football tournament organised by FIFA. It will be held in Russia, from 17 June to 2 July 2017, as a prelude to the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Russia was announced as the host on 2 December 2010 after the country was awarded the hosting rights of the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The matches will be played in four different stadiums across four cities: Saint Petersburg, Moscow, Kazan, and Sochi. It will be the first time Russia hosts the tournament, and the third time the Confederations Cup is held in the European continent. As hosts, Russia qualified automatically for the tournament; they will be joined by the six winners of the FIFA confederation championships and the 2014 FIFA World Cup champions, Germany. The final tournament will be played in two stages: a group stage and a latter knockout stage. In the group stage, each team will play three games in a group of four, with the winners and runners-up from each group advancing to the knockout stage. In the knockout stage, the four teams will compete in single-elimination matches, beginning with the semi-finals and ending with the final match of the tournament. A third-place match will also be played between the two losing semi-finalist teams. The following teams have qualified for the tournament: Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup hosts, Germany 2014 FIFA World Cup winners, Australia 2015 AFC Asian Cup winners, Chile 2015 Copa América winners, Mexico 2015 CONCACAF Cup winners, New Zealand 2016 OFC Nations Cup winners, Portugal UEFA Euro 2016 winners and Cameroon 2017 Africa Cup of Nations winners.
Krestovsky Stadium in Saint Petersburg
The Krestovsky Stadium, also called Zenit Arena, is a football stadium in the western portion of Krestovsky Island in Saint Petersburg, which is currently under construction. It the new home of FC Zenit Saint Petersburg. The stadium was planned to be completed by December 2008, which was changed to late 2011. It was finally opened in April 2017. The stadium has a capacity of 68,134 people. It will be called Saint Petersburg Stadium during the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and 2018 FIFA World Cup. Interestingly enough the construction that was initially supposed to end in March 2009 continues until now, with “some cosmetic changes to be finished soon”. Website of the stadium: Krestovsky Stadium
Kazan Arena in Kazan
The Kazan Arena is a stadium in Kazan, Republic of Tatarstan. It was completed in July 2013, and will host football matches, especially Rubin Kazan‘s home games in the Russian Premier League. The stadium has the largest outside screen on the European continent. The arena was opened in July 2013 and has a capacity of 45,379. Website of the stadium: kazan-arena.ru
Fisht Olympic Stadium in Sochi
Fisht Olympic Stadium is an open-air stadium. Located in Sochi Olympic Park and named after Mount Fisht, the 40,000-capacity stadium was constructed for the 2014 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, where it served as the venue for their opening and closing ceremonies. The stadium was originally built as an enclosed facility; it is currently undergoing a conversion into an open-air football stadium in preparation for the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and 2018 FIFA World Cup when it will be called Fisht Stadium. The stadium was opened in April 2013 and has a capacity of 47,659. Wikipedia Sochi Olympic Park
