World Cup Fans From Colombia to Poland Are Cheering Ruble's Drop

(Bloomberg) -- Soccer fans from Colombia to Poland, Tunisia and Peru have reason to celebrate before the World Cup has even begun.

Among tournament qualifiers, their currencies have rallied the most against the Russian ruble over the past month amid the host nation’s world-leading losses. While that won’t make flights or tickets cheaper -- they’re usually priced in dollars -- it should reduce costs within Russia such as hotel rooms, meals, cabs and bar tabs.

Colombia is riding star midfielder James Rodriguez to its second straight World Cup finals, while Poland and Tunisia are returning for the first time in a decade. Fans from Peru, which ended a 36-year drought, have purchased almost 40,000 tickets, eighth-most in the world, according to governing body FIFA.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ben Bartenstein in Lima at bbartenstei3@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Rita Nazareth at rnazareth@bloomberg.net, Jeremy Herron at jherron8@bloomberg.net, Brendan Walsh

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