PSO Kazan is no longer in charge of the construction in Samara. The company would not complete the project within promised budget and had to step down.

Regional authorities in Samara confirmed there has to be a contractor change at the site of Samara Arena. PSO Kazan didn’t agree to continue working without additional funds for the project. Due to Russia’s economic troubles, previously earmarked funds have considerably lower value today and thus PSO Kazan appealed several times for a financial boost.

Without these funds, it’s now obvious a new general contractor has to be appointed. While sports minister Vitaly Mutko and the regional officials assure works are still ongoing based on subcontractual agreements, there is no chance of avoiding delays in such circumstance.

For the time being delivery is still set for the end of 2017, which is the first “final deadline” from FIFA. The global federation demands for all host venues to be ready 6 months before the tournament, which is exactly the end of 2017. However, practice shows that delivery even within 3 months of the World Cup doesn’t mean a venue is dropped from the host list.

As a sign of limited progress recently, let us just note that it took a month to install three first segments of the stadium’s dome. There should be 32 in total, still leaving great deal of work on the roof. If the current pace is retained, there is no chance of delivering the stadium in time.

Samara Arena is expected to host 4 group games and two knock-out fixtures during the summer of 2018.