MOSCOW (Reuters) - 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. 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. The Confederations Cup will be staged in four of the 11 World Cup host cities - St Petersburg, Moscow, Kazan and Sochi.

Source: The Star March 02, 2017 15:00 UTC