MOSCOW, May 29. /TASS/. One in two Russians plan to follow the 2018 FIFA World Cup, while five percent of those polled are going on leave to focus on the tournament, the Mediascope pollster said in a statement on Tuesday.

"According to the survey’s results, one in two Russians (54%) aged 12 to 64 plan to follow the 2018 FIFA World Cup. As many as 30% of those polled failed to clarify their intentions," the statement reads. "The World Cup is going to be held in the summer, when most Russians go on leave, so 33% of those who plan to follow the tournament will do so while on leave, with five percent going on leave particularly to watch football matches.

A total of 80% of those intending to follow the tournament will watch TV broadcasts and only 21% will attend matches. As many as 31% of the event’s TV audience plans to place bets on matches.

2018 FIFA World Cup

The 2018 FIFA World Cup, the first-ever hosted by Russia, will be held between June 14 and July 15, 2018, in 11 Russian cities - Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Yekaterinburg, Samara, Sochi and Rostov-on-Don.

Russia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Uruguay will make up Group A, while Group B will include Portugal, Spain, Iran and Morocco. Group C is going to consist of France, Australia, Peru and Denmark, while Group D will be Argentina, Iceland, Croatia and Nigeria. Group E will be composed of Brazil, Switzerland, Costa Rica and Serbia. Group F has Germany, Mexico, Sweden and South Korea, while Group G will encompass Belgium, Panama, Tunisia and England. Finally, Group H has Poland, Colombia, Senegal and Japan.