Russia waives some visas for Champions final

Russia has waived entry visa requirements for fans with a valid ticket for the May 21 Champions League final between Manchester United and Chelsea, match organiser Alexei Sorokin told Reuters yesterday.

However, a Russian foreign ministry spokesman said officials were still working on arrangements for visa-free entry and details had not been finalised. The offer would apply only to certain categories of fans, he said.

"A fan can come without a visa and...enter Russia with a valid ticket," said Sorokin, the Russian official coordinating preparations for the match. "It is an unprecedented decision by the Russian government."

Sorokin said visa-free entry would be valid only for a stay of not more than 72 hours.

The ministry spokesman said it was possible the visa-free arrangement would apply only to those fans who arrived in Russia on the day of the match and left immediately afterwards, without an overnight stay.

Thousands of British fans are expected to travel to the match with the Premier League rivals facing each other in the final at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium. The two English clubs have been allocated 21,000 tickets each.