Russia is officially ranked No.66 out of the 207 national teams which compete for the World Cup every four years. In fact, the host country is the lowest ranked team in the tournament. So that means there's little optimism across the world's largest country, with many fearful they might not even get out of their group. Our Aljosa Milenkovic spoke to some of their supporters in the capital city, Moscow.

It was "kazachok" at the Spartak football field in Moscow, followed by an outstanding performance of the Russian anthem by the world famous "Aleksandrov" military ensemble. All designed to boost the spirit of the audience at the opening of the so-called World Football Cup of Celebrities. This event was held just a couple of days before all eyes are on Russia to witness what some would say is sport's greatest event - the World Cup. The opening match here was held between Russia and Slovenia, hence the undivided attention of the hundreds of spectators.

ALJOSA MILENKOVIC MOSCOW "It is just a sneak preview of what will really happen in just few days from now, not just here in Moscow, but at many football stadiums across Russia. Although football was never a Russian thing, people here do share quite some passion about their national team. And like in every other country around the world, everybody thinks that he or she would be the best national team coach."

ANDREY MOSCOW RESIDENT "I'd like to see them progress into the next round. But they are a weak team. I think that different players should have been chosen for the national team. Younger ones and more talented."

ANNA MOSCOW RESIDENT "We hope for success and we would like our team to qualify further from the group stage. Even that would be a great victory and success. We hope that our team will meet our expectations."

In another Moscow suburb, I've met Rinat Dasayev. A football legend, and one of the best goalkeepers the game has ever seen. His opinion about the prospects of the Russian national team were not too different compared with those of the people I met at the Spartak stadium.

RINAT DASAYEV FORMER GOALKEEPER, USSR "There are a lot of young players and their results have been poor in recent years. And a lot of them passed through the team. But despite all that, not advancing into the next round of the competition would be a crime."

The Russian team is obviously under severe pressure from not just its fans, but also the international audience. This comes after a massive doping scandal swept through Russian sports, effectively paralyzing their participation in February's Winter Olympics. The Russian team is under constant scrutiny of anti-doping bodies.

STANISLAV CHERCHESOV HEAD COACH "We do participate in that process and we are constantly checked. So far they've done it three times. That's a normal process and we are accepting it in spirit. And they are checking others as well, not just our team."

Russia hopes that this World Cup is a win-win situation for them. Even if their team fails to find success, they hope that just by hosting the event, they can be seen as winners. Aljosa Milenkovic, CGTN, Moscow.