【明報專訊】The World Cup is the most important association football tournament in the world. Let's find out some interesting facts of this big sporting event!

1．Zabivaka the wolf

Each World Cup has had its own mascot since 1966. The mascot for this year's tournament is a wolf called Zabivaka, who radiates fun, charm and confidence. The name is translated from a Russian term meaning "the one who scores". The wolf will be an ambassador for Russia, promoting the event and entertaining crowds at the stadiums.

2．The cat prophet

A white-furred deaf cat named Achilles who lives in the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia, has been selected to predict the 2018 World Cup winners, by choosing one of two food bowls marked in team colours. Achilles performed a similar service at the Confederations Cup (洲際國家盃) in Russia last summer, where he reportedly made three correct forecasts out of four.

3．Russian president playing football

The International Football Federation (FIFA) published a promotional video in March, to mark the countdown to the official opening of World Cup on June 14 2018. Apart from legendary football players, the video also shows Russian president Putin (普京) demonstrating his football skills.

4．"Park the bus"

Is it possible to park a bus on the football pitch? "Park the bus" refers to a defensive strategy. If a football team parks the bus, it defends without trying to attack, with almost all of the players on the team staying on their own half of the pitch.

5．You can't own the trophy!

The winning team at the World Cup joyfully lift the trophy, but they cannot take it home. There are regulations stating that the trophy shall remain in FIFA's possession. Instead, the winners are awarded a replica which they get to keep as a permanent reminder of their great triumph.

6．High-tech match ball

The official match ball for World Cup Russia is called "Telstar 18". It is a homage to the classic design of Telstar in 1970. To embrace the digital age, Telstar 18 includes an embedded "NFC chip" (「NFC晶片」), which enables consumers to interact with the ball using a smartphone.

Sources: Ming Pao, FIFA

■English highway﹕homage

If you pay homage to somebody or something, you show respect for someone or something you think is important.

e.g. The film pays homage to the renowned martial arts stars.

■Glossary

tournament (n) 錦標賽

predict (v) 預言

defensive (adj) 防守的

replica (n) 複製品

[Smarties' Power English 第220期]