The international football governing body, FIFA, and the organizing committee of the 2018 FIFA World Cup to be hosted by Russia are preparing measures to counter racism.

"The sustainability agenda for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, in development between the LOC and FIFA, will include anti-discrimination and anti-racism initiatives," the FIFA press service told Interfax.

FIFA suggested that it was not in a position to comment on recent incidents involving manifestations of racism and Nazism by Russian fans during UEFA Champions League and Russian Cup games.

In general, FIFA through the work carried out by its various Standing Committees is actively engaged in fighting against all kinds of discrimination within football and within society as a whole," the FIFA press service told Interfax.The FIFA press service stressed that neither the UEFA Champions League match between CSKA and Manchester City, in which Moscow fans supposedly insulted Manchester City captain Yaya Toure by racist chants, nor a Russian Cup game between Shinnik Yaroslavl and Spartak Moscow, during which a Spartak fan unfolded a flag with the swastika, fall under FIFA's jurisdiction.

"The creation of FIFA's Anti-Discrimination Task Force by FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter in early March 2013 was a key step in FIFA's ongoing fight against discrimination," it said.

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