ROBBIE WILLIAMS TO PERFORM AT THE 2018 FIFA WORLD CUP OPENING CEREMONY
(London – June 11, 2018) – On June 14th, just a few moments before Russia and Saudi Arabia kick off the 2018 FIFA World Cup™, Robbie Williams will perform a spectacular live set to the stadium crowd and the millions watching across the globe. Celebrated Russian soprano Aida Garifullina will join Robbie for a special, one-off duet during his performance.
Robbie says – “I’m so happy and excited to be going back to Russia for such a unique performance. I’ve done a lot in my career, and opening the FIFA World Cup to 80,000 football fans in the stadium and many millions all over the world is a boyhood dream. We’d like to invite football and music fans to party with us in Russia, in the stadium, or to tune in their TVs a little earlier for an unforgettable show.”
Ronaldo (two-time winner of the FIFA World Cup with Brazil) will also appear at the opening ceremony.
The 2018 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony will have a slightly different format compared to previous editions of the tournament. This time, the ceremony will focus on musical acts and will take place much closer to kick-off, just half an hour before the start of the match, which is scheduled for 18:00 (local time).
Yesterday saw Robbie once again lead out the England team in the annual Soccer Aid for UNICEF match. The charity fundraising football event was co-founded by Robbie in 2006 and before last night’s match had raised over £24 million for children in danger around the world. Whilst donations from yesterday’s fundraiser are still coming in, yesterday’s total was a record for the largest amount raised on the night since the project began.
Robbie has just announced a string of South American live dates as part of The Heavy Entertainment Show Tour [more details at www.robbiewilliams.com ]. Robbie released the platinum-selling album of the same name in November 2016, which includes the singles “Party Like a Russian” and “Love My Life.” It debuted at Number 1 on the UK album chart.
-30-