The site in front of the Family Center “Kazan” is ready to host the FIFA Fan Festival

(KZN.RU, June 8). Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan, inspected the readiness of the promenade from the metro station “Kozya Sloboda” to the Family Center “Kazan” and the site in front of the Chasha, where the FIFA Fan Festival will take place.

The territory near the Family Center “Kazan”  was chosen by the International Federation of Football Associations for the FIFA Fan Festival, which will begin work on the first day of the championship (June 14) and finish on July 15. As previously reported, it can host about 25 thousand people at the same time.

According to Marat Zakirov, the deputy general director of the Directorate for Sports and Social Projects, the site is ready for operation. All the works on its technical equipment and infrastructure organization have been completely finished. It remains to carry out control measures.

The Volunteer Center has already been working on the site for several days. In total, 220 city volunteers are to be involved in the work of the site. They will demonstrate their skills on June 12 on the Day of Russia. “This event is very important for us, we will be able to test all the functions of the site on it”, said Marat Zakirov. “It is important for us to use the maximum number of service personnel on this day so that they will all feel how the process will be organized on the site during the festival”.

The Mayor of Kazan talked with volunteers. Some of them have already worked as volunteers last year during the FIFA Confederations Cup matches. The head of the city asked them what languages they speak. Almost all volunteers are fluent in English. He noted that the volunteer staff is the pride of the capital of Tatarstan.

“The friendliness, hospitality, goodwill of our citizens and extraordinary volunteers were mentioned by our guests at the past events - such as the Universiade, FINA Water Sports Championship, the Confederations Cup. I'm glad that you already have experience of participating in such events”, said Ilsur Metshin.

Guzel Ananieva, the director of the Department of Food and Social Catering of Kazan, presented a restaurant complex that will offer guests an extensive menu with hot dishes and various snacks. According to Marat Zakirov, the main emphasis in organizing the restaurant complex was placed on quick service.

The Fan Festival will be the only official venue for watching matches outside the stadium. 2 screens are installed on the festival grounds for this purpose. “The second screen will form an entertainment zone and create a special atmosphere”, said Marat Zakirov.

The main issue in such major events is the security. “The law enforcement agencies approach this issue very seriously. The situation is constantly monitored”, said M. Zakirov. “The Fan Festival became a serious impetus for the development of this site at the Family Center “Kazan”. All infrastructure and equipment will remain there that will allow carrying out events of any level in the future”, explained M. Zakirov.

The Mayor noted that the events of this summer will be the most ambitious for the city. “Despite the fact that we have experience in holding major sports events, we are holding such a large-scale event for the first time”, marked Ilsur Metshin. “We must be fully prepared and responsible to receive so many guests of the festival. Fans come with different moods, someone is happy with the victory, someone is upset, and so safety issues need to be worked out once again. We must also pay attention to catering, the organization of bathrooms so that everyone will have enough. We must meet the upcoming tournament in full combat readiness”.

Further, the head of the city inspected the well-organized boulevard from the metro station “Kozya Sloboda” to the Chasha. There is a convenient pedestrian zone with a bicycle track, lighting, video surveillance, small architectural forms and art objects, a modern toilet module. According to Rosa Zabbarova, the director of the MUP “Trust “Gorvozelenkhoz”, today the final works are being carried out. “We cleared the territory on the boulevard on Dekabristov Street. We here planted lindens, pyramidal poplars, and 3500 shrubs. We are currently working on the improvement of the whole route of the championship throughout the city”, said Rosa Zabbarova.

Igor Kulyazhev, the deputy head and the chairman of the Committee for External Improvement, noted that the pedestrian promenade perfectly blended with the architectural appearance of Dekabristov Street. “It seems like it was here from the very beginning. But there was only a narrow sidewalk along the road”, reminded I. Kulyazhev. He also said that now there is a recreation area in the park where the installation of small architectural forms is being completed. For example, there is an unusual art object: 32 concrete balls are spread on the lawn. Each of them indicates the names of the countries participating in the FIFA and one central ball is symbolizing the commonwealth of countries participating in the championship.

The Fan Festival will work from June 14 to July 15. During this time, visitors to the festival will be able to get to know the culture of all countries participating in the championship more closely. The site will be closed for 6 days: on June 29 and July 5, 8, 9, 12, and 13.