Russia soccer success an example

World Cup progress comes as the international sport tackles host of problems

Aleksandr Golovin was born in the small Siberian town of Kaltan, where most of the 22,000 residents work in the mining industry.

His first soccer coach lost his hand in a mining accident and the only full-size soccer field is in terrible condition during the summer and freezing winters.

Slightly built and a little shy, but determined and dedicated, the midfielder was spotted by CSKA Moscow scouts when he was 16.

Nurtured carefully by coach Leonid Slutsky, he was promoted to CSKA's first-team squad in 2015, made exceptional progress and played for the national team at Euro 2016. By the time the Confederations Cup was staged last year, Golovin was integral to the side and frequently linked with a move to English Premier League clubs such as Arsenal and Chelsea. This year, he is viewed as Russia's main source of creativity－at the age of 22.

Sport analysts said if Russia had a few more stories like Golovin's, it would have been a major force at previous World Cups. Even so, host Russia beat Spain at this year's tournament to reach the quarterfinals, where it faces Croatia on Saturday.

In the vast country of nearly 145 million people, soccer is the most popular sport, despite fierce competition from ice hockey.

This can be seen in any Russian city, whatever the weather conditions.

Soccer gained popularity among Russian youngsters in the early 1990s, after the Soviet Union broke up.

At the time, the sport in Russia was in a disastrous state economically, and many elite players moved to Western Europe, according to soccer columnist Michael Yokhin.

The most talented found themselves in the top leagues, such as Igor Shalimov and Igor Kolyvanov in Serie A, Andrei Kanchelskis in the English Premier League, Valery Karpin, Aleksandr Mostovoi and Viktor Onopko in La Liga, and Sergei Kiryakov in the Bundesliga, Yokhin said.

The success of these players inspired Russian youngsters to join youth clubs. In 1993, the Children's Football League of Russia was founded and became an associate member of the Russian Football Union.

Victor Gorlov, president of the Children's Football League, said the league is playing a significant role in the development of soccer in Russia, and now acts as a springboard for many of the country's professional players as it organizes more than 20 tournaments each year for players ages 8 to 15.

"The tournaments stretch beyond Russia to countries such as Serbia, Ukraine, Belarus, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Moldova, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan," Gorlov said.

He said the success of the soccer industry involves training and investing in young players. With the help of the Children's Football League, more talented Russians have been found. Meanwhile, the sport's popularity has been regained among children in Russia.