Russia moves to pick final World Cup 2018 mascot
14:02, 12 February 2016
MOSCOW. KAZINFORM - It could be practically a toss-up between these three extremely popular animals, but only one of them will become the official games mascot, Sputniknews.com.
Russia's FIFA World Cup 2018 organizing committee has issued a final shortlist of mascots for the championship.
The public will now choose between a Siberian tiger, a wolf and a cat in an online vote, organizing committee general director Alexei Sorokin said on Thursday.
"Perhaps we will include the mascots' names in a popular vote, and the final characters will already have names," Sorokin told journalists.
Although cats, as well as wolves, are popular as Internet talisman animals, the tiger may become a surprise hit because of the recent widely-publicized friendship between Amur the Siberian Tiger and Timur the Goat.