KHARTOUM, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- Sudan on Thursday received the 2018 FIFA World Cup trophy, which arrived in Khartoum in the company of Representatives of FIFA Executive Office, as part of its global tour en route to Russia.
Sudan Youth and Sports Minister Abdul-Karim Mussa, Khartoum State's Youth and Sports Minister Al-Yasa' Siddiq and leaders of the Sudan Football Association were at the reception of the trophy upon arrival at Khartoum airport Thursday.
"The event represents a new era of glory for Sudan, whose doors have become open to the world," said Abdul-Karim Mussa, Sudan's Youth and Sports Minister, at a press conference at Khartoum airport.
"Such an event is likely to inform the world about Sudan," noted the Sudanese minister.
Victoria Lopyreva, official ambassador of the FIFA World Cup 2018, for her part, described the arrival of the FIFA World Cup trophy in Sudan for the first time as "a historical moment."
She reiterated that football brings people together, saying "I think that football unites people, and it doesn't matter which nationality we are, what the color of the skin or our social background is, all of us are really united by football."
The Sudanese sports authorities are scheduled to organize a ceremony on Friday before the trophy heads to Ethiopia.
The 2018 FIFA World Cup trophy tour, sponsored by Coa-Cola kicked off last September in host country Russia and will visit more than 50 countries and regions across six continents, travelling 126,000 kilometers in nine months in the lead-up to the football tournament.
The 2018 FIFA World Cup will be held from June 14-July 15, 2018 in Russia.
