Russian President Vladimir Putin has sent a telegram to FIFA President Sepp Blatter to congratulate him on his reelection as head of world soccer's governing body.
The Kremlin said in a statement that Putin "expressed confidence" that Blatter's "experience, professionalism, and high authority" would help him to spread the game's popularity around the world.
Russia is due to host FIFA's World Cup games in 2018.
The statement follows Blatter's election to a fifth term as FIFA head on May 29 in spite of the arrests two days earlier of seven FIFA officials by Swiss police based on U.S. charges of corruption.
Swiss authorities have opened a separate criminal investigation into the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar.
