2018 FIFA World Cup
14 June to 15 July 2018, Russia
Date of Issue : 16 April 2018
From 14 June to 15 July 2018, Russia will host the 21st Football World Cup. The opening match between Russia and Saudi Arabia will take place at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow. Monaco Post issued a postage stamp to commemorate this great sporting event on 16th April 2018 featuring two players fighting for the ball in the foreground and the goalkeeper trying to catch a shot in the background. The stamp shows the flags of the participating nations. The whole picture is shown on the map of Russia with the event venues marked on the map.
Date of Issue : 25 May 2018
Magyar Posta has issued a special stamp on 25th May 2018 to mark the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
All surveys show that football is the world’s most popular sport. Much research has been done by many to explain why this is, but no one has yet found the precise answer. However, several clear conclusions can be drawn from the results of the research. Football’s popularity is unwavering and it is far more than simply a sport because it is a hobby, profession, business and entertainment at one and the same time. Not to mention that it fuels emotions as everyone has an opinion about it, a favourite team and favourite players. Perhaps the most important thing about it is, however, that every country has its own national team, and the best of these are gathering in Russia this year to compete for the 2018 FIFA World Cup™.
32 national teams will play matches in refurbished stadiums in eleven Russian cities between 14 June and 15 July 2018. The hosts automatically take part while the other teams, including the defending champions Germany, win the right to participate by playing in qualifiers. The FIFA World Cup™final is traditionally one of the most watched sports events in the world. Eight nations have lifted the trophy in the 20 finals played to date, Brazil having won the FIFA World Cup™most times, on five occasions. Hungary has reached the final twice – in 1938 and 1954 – and finished as runners-up on both occasions.
Football and philately have intertwined since the early days as Magyar Posta’s first stamps with a sporting theme issued in 1925 included a football scene and the FIFA World Cup™featured in a Hungarian stamp issue in 1962.
The 2018 FIFA World Cup™stamps are arranged in a tête-bêche format, i.e. in pairs with one stamp upside-down in relation to the other. The main motif of the stamp is a football positioned over two adjoining stamps, thus creating a whole ball, with the colours symbolising the flag of the host nation in the background. The designs of the first day cover and the postmark feature motifs related to the stamp.
