The number of people travelling to Russia from Egypt and the GCC over the next month has soared, according to two travel industry websites.

Travel commerce platform Travelport said that an analysis of advanced flight bookings made through the major reservation networks used by travel agents and management companies reported a 565 percent year-on-year increase in bookings from Egypt to Russia during the dates of the World Cup, which kicks off later today and ends on July 15.

In volume terms, the number of flight bookings made through the major reservation networks from Egypt has increased by 4,358, although Travelport pointed out in a press release issued on Tuesday that this data might not capture some flights that have been booked directly through airlines' own websites.

The increase in the number of flights from Egypt is the 10th-biggest in volume terms from nations travelling to the World Cup, but the third-biggest in terms of percentage increases.

Only South American nations Brazil and Argentina had higher percentage increases in travellers to Russia. Bookings made from Argentina have increased by 939 percent, with 6,199 additional bookings made, and bookings from Brazil increased by 711 percent, with 7,663 additional bookings. The nation with the biggest increase in bookings in terms of volume is current FIFA World Cup champions Germany, where an additional 16,213 advanced flight bookings were made - a 44 percent increase.

Travelport's chief commercial officer Stephen Shurrock said in the press release: “It’s great to see the World Cup is encouraging people to travel, with Russia expecting to host 34 percent more visitors than usual during the event. German supporters are clearly feeling optimistic they can retain the title with the highest total number of fans travelling to watch their team."

Meanwhile, flight comparison portal skyscanner said in a press release on Wednesday that it had seen a 597 percent increase in traveller numbers from GCC states, although it did not give actual booking numbers or volume increases, citing commercial sensitivities when contacted by Zawya.

"As you would expect, with new direct flights launched from Saudi Arabia, the majority of the increase is coming from there but the UAE has also seen a strong increase (248 percent) for the tournament dates based on year-on-year data,"  Sam Ayles, senior growth manager of Skyscanner.ae said in an emailed statement to Zawya. Skyscanner is owned by China's CTrip.

Saudi Arabia will play in the opening fixture of the FIFA 2018 World Cup on Thursday against host nation Russia.

Football's world governing body FIFA confirmed on Wednesday that Morocco's bid to host the 2026 World Cup had not been successful.

The tournament will be held by the United States, Mexico and Canada, FIFA said in a press release issued on Wednesday. The tri-partite North American bid received 134 (67 percent) of the 200 votes cast. Morocco's bid received 65 votes and one member organisation did not vote.

The FIFA World Cup competition takes place every four years. The next tournament in 2022 is due to be held in Qatar.


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(Writing by Michael Fahy; Editing by Mily Chakrabarty)
(michael.fahy@thomsonreuters.com)

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