Chelsea and Manchester City fans face ban from Club World Cup
Chelsea and Manchester City fans who have received football banning orders will be banned from travelling to the US this summer for the Club World Cup.
Supporters who have previously committed “thuggish behaviour” – including violence, disorder, pitch invasions, use of pyrotechnics and online hate crime linked to football – will be required to surrender their passports to police for the duration of the tournament.
Those who do not comply face unlimited fines, up to six months in prison and an extension of their banning order, the Home Office said.
“Many Manchester City and Chelsea fans will want to travel to support their teams in this summer’s tournament and we want them all to do so safely and enjoyably,” said policing minister Dame Diana Johnson.
“But for the tiny minority of troublemakers who use football as an excuse for criminality, we will be applying the same proven preventative measures that we have successfully done for other overseas tournaments.
“As part of the Safer Streets Mission and the government’s Plan for Change, we will continue to crack down on the hooligan minority, so that the vast majority can carry on attending football without trouble.”
The move comes amid fears that US visa backlogs and President Trump’s immigration policy will limit the number of visitors both this summer and at the 2026 World Cup.
Chelsea and Manchester City are the only English clubs to have qualified for the Club World Cup, which is due to run from 14 June to 13 July. No Scottish, Welsh or Irish teams will feature.
Football banning orders are imposed by courts, following conviction for a football-related offence or following an application by police or the Crown Prosecution Service.
The Club World Cup travel ban is expected to apply to around 150 supporters of Chelsea and City, who will be contacted by the Football Banning Orders Authority.
More than 2,000 banning orders were in force at the start of this season, and a similar passport surrender scheme was in place for last summer’s Euros in Germany.