"I think that whoever has visited this country over the past four weeks, will come back home with a memory that Russia is one of the best hosts of the FIFA World Cup. I feel for Qatar because you have set the bar very, very high," Samoura said.

Samoura added that Russia had exceeded all expectations during the World Cup.

"You have exceeded all our expectations, in hosting, in organising, in security, in friendly smiles, in accepting diversity," the secretary general said.

Samoura added that she wished to express her profound gratitude to Russian President Vladimir Putin for making the event possible.