Moscow - Fans at next year's World Cup
and this year's Confederations Cup in Russia will need special
identity cards before they can watch matches, soccer's governing
body said Thursday.
Football hooliganism, which had appeared to be waning at
major tournaments, has again become a serious concern after Euro
2016 in France, when Russians were in the thick of the action.
Russia were handed a suspended disqualification by European
soccer body UEFA and fined 150,000 euros ($157,605) after their
fans were involved in violent clashes with England supporters
before a group game in Marseille.
Colin Smith, director of competitions for global soccer body
FIFA, said Russian authorities would be responsible for issuing
the identity cards.
"Every fan will be required to have a fan ID to enter the
stadiums, both for the Confederations Cup and for FIFA World
Cup, and so we have got trust in the authorities that everything
will be done," he told reporters during a tour of venues.
"What we can be sure of is that this will be a festival of
football and there is no place in such festivals of football for
those that are not here to support the sport or support the
game."
The cards will include the holder's photograph and contact
details and can be used instead of visas to enter the country.
The Confederations Cup will be staged in four of the 11
World Cup host cities - St Petersburg, Moscow, Kazan and Sochi.
"In general we are satisfied with the progress and the
plans, there is clearly still a lot of work to be done in
certain venues," Smith said.