A deaf, white cat named Achilles is soon to begin his work as Russia's official soothsayer for the World Cup, following in the tentacle-prints of Paul the Octopus who became a star in 2010. Paul predicted winners for that year's World Cup by choosing one out of two boxes containing food, while Achilles will be presented with bowls marked with teams' flags.

"We went for Achilles because he is beautiful, first of all, but also because — like all white cats with blue eyes — he is deaf, so he has a great deal of intuition, he sees with his heart," said Anna Kasatkina, a vet who oversees guard-cats at St Petersburg's Hermitage museum.