Bear carted out in outrageous Russian football stunt

Football fans have all eyes on Russia ahead of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in June.

A recent match between local teams Mashuk-KMV and FC Angusht Nazran featured a brown bear handing the match ball to the referee. 

It is as confusing and outrageous as it sounds. 

The bear, standing on its hind legs, hands the ball to the referee. The referee then appears to instruct the bear to clap, presumably in tune with the music that is playing in the background. 

Metro reports that the stunt was a rehearsal before the World Cup. 

Are the Russians expecting their football matches to be so bad that they would need to cart a live bear out to get the crowd going?

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