A Nigerian woman, Blessing Obuson, has told Reuters of her ordeal in Russia during the World Cup held in June 2018.
The 19-year-old flew into Moscow, capital of Russia, from Nigeria last June with hopes that the World Cup would be an opportunity to find a job.
The teenager arrived in Russia on a fan ID, which allowed visa-free entry to World Cup spectators with match tickets but did not permit them to work.
Ms Obuson had hoped to work as a shop assistant to fend for her two-year-old daughter and younger siblings back in Edo State.
She was instead locked in a flat on the outskirts of Moscow and forced into sex work alongside 11 other Nigerian women.
Obuson said she and the other girls were supervised by a Nigerian woman she described as madam.
“I cried really hard. But what choice did I have?” Obuson said.
Her passport was confiscated by the madam who told her she would have to work until she offsets a fictional debt of $50,000.
Obuson got help after she told her story to a rare English-speaking client, who then informed anti-slavery activists.
Reuters met with eight other Nigerian women aged between 16 and 22 who said they were brought into Russia on fan IDs and forced into sex work.
“They don’t give you food for days, they slap you, they beat you, they spit in your face … It’s like a cage,” said a 21-year-old woman, who declined to be named.
The Russian police and the Nigerian embassy in Moscow did not respond to requests for comment.
