Gearing Up for 2018 World Cup? Russia Introduces Mandatory ID for Football Fans

Football fans from around the world will fly to Russia to cheer for their national teams during the 2018 World Cup. However, according to a statement by Russia’s Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications, foreign and Russian spectators alike must first obtain a specific “FAN ID” in order to access the 2018 FIFA World Cup stadia.

According to the statement, the FAN ID will be a “mandatory document” for spectators to attend the matches..

This could be good news for Moroccans willing to travel to Russia in 2018 to cheer on their Moroccan football team. Foreign citizens can use their FAN IDs to enter the federation without needing a visa. The IDs, containing the user’s personal information and photo, will be “issued free of charge and [are] valid for all the 2018 FIFA World Cup matches,” added the ministry.

“Spectators can fill an application for FAN ID and get one after purchasing tickets to attend the event,” said Andrei Romankov, Deputy Director of the Department for the Implementation of Strategic Projects in the Russian Ministry of Communications and Mass Media.

Moroccan fans who are excited to attend the tournament to support the Atlas Lions will have to apply for the ID at fan-id.ru.

The statement added, “applicants can choose to have their FAN IDs delivered by mail or to get them directly from one of the VFS Global Visa Application Centers or one of the foreign offices of the Federal Agency for the Commonwealth of Independent States Affairs, Compatriots Living Abroad, and International Humanitarian Cooperation (Rossotrudnichestvo).”

The Russian ministry added that a list of relevant locations will also be available via the official website.

Morocco qualified for the tournament on November 11 after its 2-0 win over Cote d’Ivoire.

This operation is being implemented by Russia’s Ministry of Communications and Mass Media, who debuted the FAN ID earlier this year during the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017.

“Approximately 480,000 FAN IDs were ordered to attend the matches. 10% of the FAN IDs were ordered by foreign citizens from over 100 countries of the world. Most fans attended the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017 were from Chile, Mexico, Ukraine, Germany, Uzbekistan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, the USA, China, Nigeria, England, Armenia and Tadzhikistan,” said the ministry.