"I would like to thank the members of the FIFA executive committee for their decision, that they trusted us with staging the football World Cup," Putin said in televised remarks.

The Russian prime minister, who spearheaded the campaign to bring his country the world's most-watched sporting event for the first time, said he would travel to Zurich later Thursday.

"I would like to assure the FIFA leadership that we will do everything possible to ensure that the 2018 football World Cup is staged at a deserving level," Putin said.

Russia beat off competition from England, Spain/Portugal and Netherlands/Belgium.