| 1 | The Russian president said that Blatter -- and heads of big international sporting federations -- deserve "special recognition." |
| 2 | The preliminary draw for the 2018 World Cup, which Russia is slated to host, was held Saturday at the Konstantin Palace in St. Petersburg. |
| 3 | "People like Mr. Blatter or heads of big international sporting federations, or the Olympic Games, deserve special recognition. If there is anyone who deserves the Nobel Prize, it's those people." |
| 4 | Blatter announced he would be stepping down following the arrest of seven FIFA officials as part of an investigation that had 14 people indicted on corruption charges. |
| 5 | Blatter announced that he would call for elections to choose a new president, and has said he would remain in his position until a FIFA Congress could be held for his successor to be elected. |
| 6 | FIFA will vote on Blatter's replacement in February. |
| 7 | A separate criminal investigation by Swiss authorities into how the 2018 and 2022 World Cups were allocated is also underway, BBC News reported. |
| 8 | The 2022 World Cup is slated to be held in Qatar. |
| 9 | "I don't want to go into details, but I don't believe a word about [Blatter] being involved in corruption personally," added Putin. |
| 10 | Russian officials have said that the 2018 World Cup will cost $18.2 billion, but that number will likely increase to $20 billion, reported ESPN. |