that we broadcast on 6 June was held in Yekaterinburg, the capital of the Urals and on the very edge of Europe.

It’s one of the 11 World Cup host cities, which also include Moscow, St Petersburg, and Sochi, and as it’s the easternmost of them, and a major city where 主播大秀 News Russian doesn’t often go, we thought let’s go somewhere that’s a bit more off the beaten track.

The format of the 主播大秀 News Russian debate programme is different from 主播大秀 One’s Question Time. Our programme is based on a motion, like the Oxford Union debating society, ideally with two speakers supporting the motion and two speakers opposing. We have an audience, invited through our social media channels and our website, who are free to express their views and ask questions and also to vote on the motion.

We knew there was going to be lots of coverage of the preparations for the World Cup, but decided it would be interesting to debate the tournament’s likely legacy and put it into context with other countries, such as the UK with the Olympics, and Brazil with the Olympics and also the World Cup. What sort of infrastructure did they introduce, what happened to all the venues, and have the lives of the people improved?

The initial debate venue was a very prominent one in the city, and everything was going really well. Then, fairly close to the filming date, we were told that we couldn’t film there.

We had to think on our feet and quickly find another location. It was tricky, because such broadcasts are a major operation, but we managed to reorganise it. Even with the alternative venue we had some difficulties, because the local authorities told them not to host us, but they went ahead anyway. Perhaps people were worried that we were going to bring their World Cup preparations into disrepute, or show the city in a disrespectful or unfair way.

There were people in the audience who were very enthusiastic, saying the World Cup is a wonderful opportunity, a huge boost to Russian morale, and an image-creating opportunity. On the other hand there were those who claimed it’s too expensive, that the vast amount of money spent on rebuilding stadiums for the World Cup could be used to do lots of other things across the country, like improving infrastructure.

Our panellists were very good. One of them was Maria Komandnaya, who’s well known because she co-hosted the official World Cup draw ceremony with Gary Lineker. She was very enthusiastic about the World Cup and made a good case for it. We also had a local journalist, Dmitri Kolezev, who argued that the money could have been spent better.

We asked the audience if they or anyone they knew was involved with the World Cup or projects related to it, and many of them raised their hands.

Some of those in the audience were from outside Yekaterinburg, and there was a local councillor from a town in the Urals, Natalya Krylova, who was very vocal in her criticism of the way so much money was being spent on it compared to what people in small towns need, for instance she spoke about people not having working toilets.

I think the debate showed that while a lot of people in Russia are generally supportive of the World Cup, some are frustrated, feeling that - if they don’t live in a host city - then they’re not given enough attention.

People in Russia may not get to see this kind of event often, certainly not on Russian state TV, and so it was a special occasion for us to host such a lively discussion. The 主播大秀 Russian debate programme is filmed on location all over the world and is part of the 主播大秀’s expansion plans to enlarge our global audience reach. It was set out to engage with people by providing alternative perspectives which they might not otherwise encounter.

The World Cup is here, and excitement will soon be reaching fever pitch. Thirty two nations are competing, from the hosts Russia to Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, South Korea, Iran, Peru and - who can forget that booming handclap that took the world by storm at Euro 2016 - Iceland!

Amid all the excitement, you might spare a thought for all the football commentators and sports journalists who have to get their heads around some pretty tricky footballer names – and lots of them. But just how do 主播大秀 broadcasters know how to pronounce them?

Back at 主播大秀 HQ, there is a small team of three linguists who make up the 主播大秀 Pronunciation Unit. We are all phoneticians who speak a number of languages besides English and we provide an advisory service for 主播大秀 broadcasters - it is our job to research pronunciations and provide guidance.

All of our advice is anglicised so that it is pronounceable by broadcasters and intelligible to audiences. We use a phonetic system called to render pronunciations in writing, and in all cases, stressed syllables are shown in upper case.

In general, our policy is that where an established anglicisation exists, that is what we recommend. In cases like Paris, where the English and French forms are spelt identically, broadcasters are advised to use the established anglicised form: PARR-iss not parr-EE.

In cases where there is an established English place name, such as Moscow, pronounced MOSS-koh in British English, we advise broadcasters to adopt the English form of the name rather than the Russian form Moskva.

In the case of little-known place names, we recommend a pronunciation which is as close to native pronunciation as possible, but in keeping with the sounds of English.

One of the place names already getting a lot of attention is England’s base near St Petersburg called Repino, named after the Russian painter, Ilya Repin. The place name should be pronounced with stress on the first syllable: RAY-pin-oh (-ay as in day, note first syllable stress), although the pronunciations REP-in-oh and REP-in-uh (-e as in get, -uh as ‘o’ in cannon) are also possible anglicisations.

The Moscow stadium where the opening game takes place is Luzhniki, pronounced with stress on the final syllable: loozh-nik-EE (-zh as 's' in measure, note final syllable stress).

Nizhny Novgorod is often anglicised as NIZH-ni NOV-guh-rodd (-1st -i as in bit, -zh as ‘s’ in measure, -2nd -i as ‘y’ in happy, -o as in not, note first syllable stress) though the Russian pronunciation is closer to NEEZH-ni NOV-guh-ruht (-ee as in street, -zh as 's' in measure, -t as in top).

One of the host cities Kaliningrad is usually pronounced kuh-LEE-nin-grad (-uh as ‘a’ in sofa, -ee as in street, note second syllable stress) in English; the Russian pronunciation is closer to kal-in-een-GRAT (note final syllable stress).

What about some of the footballer names?

One of the stars of the Russia squad is goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev, pronounced: EE-gor ak-in-FYAY-yuhf (-ee as in street, -g as in get, -fy as in few, -ay as in day, -y as in yes, -uh as in oven, -f as in fit, note stress).

Another player to watch is Alan Dzagoev, pronounced al-AN dzag-OY-yuhf (-dz as in bids, -oy as in boy, -y as in yes, -f as in fit, note final syllable stress in first name – unlike the English pronunciation of ‘Alan’).

To conclude, here’s a selection of player names from other teams in Group G:

Tunisia: England’s first match will be against Tunisia so look out for French-born midfielder Saif-Eddine Khaoui, pronounced SAYF uh-DEEN KHAA-wi (-ay as in day, -uh as in oven, -kh as in Scottish loch, -aa as in father, -i as ‘y’ in happy), although the French pronunciation is closer to kaa-WEE (-k as in king).

Belgium: Kevin de Bruyne – the anglicised pronunciation of his name is duh BROY-nuh (-oy as in boy, -uh as 'e' in oven) but the player himself uses the pronunciation duh BROE-nuh (-oe as in French coeur) in Flemish and English, which may be further anglicised as duh BRUR-nuh (-ur as in fur but 'r' is not pronounced). The pronunciation duh BROW-nuh (-ow as in now) is debatably closer to the Standard Dutch rather than Flemish pronunciation.

Panama: defender Luis Ovalle, pronounced luu-EESS oh-VIGH-yay (-uu as in book, -ee as in street, -ss as in less, -oh as in high, -igh as in high, -y as in yes), and midfielder Aníbal Godoy, pronounced an-EE-bal god-OY (-o as in not, -oy as in boy, note stress in each name).

Of course, with any World Cup the lasting image will be that of the winning captain holding the trophy aloft amongst his team mates. As Phillip Lahm did so, I thought about all the years of training and perfect practice that had led to that moment and wondered where the training I鈥檓 currently undertaking will lead me? It won鈥檛 be with England to World Cup glory, I鈥檓 not sure whether that says more about my footballing ability or the English national team, but hopefully some sort of world domination will ensue.

As a 主播大秀 Communications Trainee I鈥檝e spent the last two months immersed in the world of Television publicity and now currently, Digital. Over the next ten months I鈥檒l be gaining experience in various other departments including News and Radio. This means I get to do some pretty cool stuff which has so far included working on the launch of upcoming TV shows, assisting on a photo shoot for Holby City at the Elstree studios and a , from City University, London. A personal highlight has also included taking a selfie with Pixie Lott. Shameless.

Above all this however (even the selfie with Pixie) is the level of training I have received since joining the 主播大秀. Alongside my comms training buddies, whose experiences range from Eastenders to the Proms, I鈥檝e been learning both in the classroom and on the job. This Thursday we attended a workshop focused on music and radio publicity and working within the guidelines of the 主播大秀 and the law.

A little less intense perhaps has been some of my own personal education this week. Since joining the 主播大秀 I鈥檝e been amazed at the amount of learning content that is available free of charge online and over the last few days I鈥檝e been following , an interactive guide for beginners through the Italian language. With an impending trip to Italy on the horizon I鈥檝e been doing my best to pick up the basics. Whilst I don鈥檛 expect to be holding in depth conversations with Italian football fans about our respective nations鈥� World Cup shortcomings, after only a few sessions I鈥檓 confident I鈥檒l be able to order some food and even tell the waiter my favourite colour!

Sam Buckett is a 主播大秀 Communications Trainee.

Editor's note. The video above was produced by Assistant Producer for 主播大秀 Sport News, Molly Armstrong. It shows the jobs some of the other people were doing at the World Cup - LM

This blog should have been outlining the grand plans for my part in the coverage of England's first World Cup triumph in 44 years. Instead I have been back home for a week attempting to digest the disappointment of a campaign that ended even more prematurely than even the most pessimistic pundit predicted.

It was, despite a stay curtailed emphatically by Joachim Loew's Germany, a hectic and fascinating South African adventure.

I am the chief football writer for the . My job is to cover Premier League clubs at home and abroad and England's national side. This takes in all the domestic and European competitions at club level and England's qualifying and friendly games.

I was based at a lodge 30 minutes' drive from England's base at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Campus in Rustenburg, living and working alongside the 主播大秀's chief football correspondent Mike Ingham, a proud and fully-deserved recipient of an MBE during the tournament, the 主播大秀's senior football reporter Ian Dennis, producer Charlotte Nicol and engineer Mike Burgess. And from beginning to end we shared the highs and lows, of England's World Cup campaign, all played out against a unique African backdrop in a vast country in thrall to the showpiece they were staging so successfully.

After navigating the smooth accreditation system put in place by Fifa and the South African authorities, covering England swiftly establishes a busy routine. We had a story almost before we had unpacked our cases, with England coach Fabio Capello revealing Rio Ferdinand had injured a knee in the first training session - news followed a hectic few hours later by confirmation that he was out of the tournament. If we were looking for bad omens for England, we had one right there.

Each day we would arrive at England's camp and go through the understandably thorough security system before being taken to watch 15 minutes of open training. Capello usually takes a position well away from the main group, although he provided plenty of excitement on one occasion with a brief, but explosive, outburst against a photographer he believed was taking pictures of England's medical room.

A chosen player will then undertake an open interview in which he will be quizzed by television crews from around the world, and will then be taken into a separate room for a briefing with the English national media. This is strictly embargoed until late at night for newspaper deadline purposes and gives the national press the opportunity to pursue their own lines of inquiry. Having attended every one of these briefings, I feel I should take the opportunity here to defend my colleagues in the media who are often wrongly accused of revelling in England's misfortune.

Yes, they report on it and take intense interest in it, but they wanted England to win the World Cup. What would be better for newspapers sales, television and radio figures and website stats than an England World Cup win?

John Terry gave the best, and most contentious, England press briefing. In the aftermath of the goalless draw with Algeria, he arrived all guns blazing back in Rustenburg, determined to get things off his chest. It became one of the most infamous moments of England's campaign as he explained how he might just say a few things at a team meeting that could upset the iron man Capello - and then effectively called for Joe Cole to be selected.

It was electrifying stuff and pure gold for the media - although it backfired on Terry as Capello breezed through the team meeting unchallenged and the former captain earned a very public ticking off from the coach.

At the game itself, my job is to serve the 主播大秀 website and tap into a number of social media outlets that illustrate the changing face of our coverage. Live text commentary has become an invaluable part of our coverage, both for updates and interaction. I would get to the stadium early and feed copy into the live text commentator, while also providing team news for Twitter and Facebook.

This process would continue during the game itself, thanks to the reliable technology provided for us and wifi inside the stadia. At the end of the game an instant match report is required on the whistle as well as a few final thoughts for the live text commentary.

And then it's off to either the coach's press conference - one or two interesting Capello briefings there - or into what is called "the mixed zone." This is a cordoned off area through which players have to pass. They may or may not choose to stop for interview. One man who did stop, was England goalkeeper Robert Green after his mistake against the United States. It would have been easy for him to race past knowing he would be heavily criticised for his error, but he offered himself up for interview in a manner which did him great credit.

After the game, an in-depth blog is required on England's performance. This can be on a very obvious line that jumps out or perhaps a more analytical look at the game. It is clear that defeat gets fans more agitated than victory as proved by 425,138 page views and 1,148 comments on the piece raking over the ashes of England's defeat against the Germans.
Interaction is key to this new age of social media. It is essential to go back on to the blog to see what comments have been made, reply and then perhaps widen out the debate. The days of just writing the piece and stepping back have long gone.

This was also the first , and a useful tool to interact with users was an hour-long Q&A - in which questions were invited on England. Quick questions and quick answers. Perfect.

Sadly, Landon Donovan's last-minute winner for the US against Algeria and Wayne Rooney's failure to score a second against the Slovenians condemned us to the most gruelling journey of all. Instead of first place in the group and a stay in Rustenburg, it was a dawn start and a rendezvous at a freezing cold petrol station for a seven-hour drive to Bloemfontein. Not all glamour - and the return journey in a hurry for Fabio Capello's final South African press conference was not made in the best of spirits after such a crushing loss.

Security was a major issue in South Africa, but common sense and taking advice was the order of the day. On a personal basis the hospitality from the locals could not have been better and the organisation on the ground was also admirable. The South Africans threw out a warm welcome to England.

Yes, the adventure was cut short by England's miserable performances - but it was another unforgettable experience.

Philip McNulty is the Chief Football Writer for the 主播大秀 Sport Website

• Editor's note. Viewing figures for the final game averaged 15.1 million (a 54 per cent share of viewers) on 主播大秀1 - LM
  
  
• 主播大秀 News coverage of the
  

It's a particularly exciting summer on the 主播大秀 this year; we'll be covering all the major sporting events such as and the from South Africa and music festivals including and .

As many of these events are live, there will be some very difficult decisions to be made around scheduling. Over on the , , Director of Vision for the 主播大秀, reveals the breadth of 主播大秀 coverage in 2010 and explains how scheduling decisions are made.

You can .