For World Cup opener, 'psychic' cat predicts winner fur real
The Russian cat may be biased.
Today's FIFA World Cup opening match between Russia and Saudi Arabia already has a winner ... according to a supposedly psychic cat in residence at St. Petersburg's Hermitage Museum.
Achilles is a white feline who officially works as a rat catcher at the museum, but moonlights as a seer.
The seemingly supernatural feline's keepers gave him two bowls of food to choose from, one labeled with the Russian flag and one labeled for Saudi Arabia. Achilles chose the bowl of Russia chow, which the attending humans have taken as a sign that Russia will win its match.
Russia's Tass news agency refers to Achilles as an "official oracle of the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup." He had a good prediction streak during that soccer event, correctly calling the winner of three out of four matches.
Tass reports Achilles showed some hesitation before making his choice. Perhaps he was taking the time to tune into a veiled world beyond human comprehension.
The museum has dozens of cats on staff to keep the rodent population down, but Achilles was chosen for his public-facing position due to his chill personality. He's also deaf.
Achilles will continue to make game predictions as the FIFA World Cup unfolds over the next month. This is the first time Russia has hosted the World Cup.