Russia to introduce ID cards for supporters

There are some big news about security during international tournaments. As you remember, during 2016 Euro Cup in France last summer, the tension between English and Russian supporters reached a critical level, with some hard fights around some French cities. Russia was fined by UEFA for €150,000 and seems intentioned to avoid such episodes to repeat again during next competitions.

Russian authorities, in fact, have announced the introduction of an ID card for supporters attending at 2017 Confederation Cup - to be played this summer - and the 2018 World Cup. This ID badge must have an identificatory photo and will be also used as a visa to access the country, other than - of course - stadiums.

A choice that will surely raise some arguments, but Colin Smith, FIFA Director of Competitions, made himself clear: “Every supporter must have his own ID badge to access the stadiums, both for Confederations Cup and FIFA World Cup, we must trust the authorities for everything to go as planned. We must ensure ourselves that’s going to be a party for football and there won’t be any space for people who don’t want to support this sport.”

The 2017 Confederations Cup will begin June 17th in eleven cities across Russia and will be attended by eight teams, with hosting country Russia and world champion Germany. The first game of the 2018 World Cup is scheduled for June 14th, 2018.