FA fears repeat of Euro 2016 hooliganism at Russia World Cup

The Football Association has admitted there could be a repeat of the hooliganism that marred England’s European Championship campaign amid growing fears over fan behaviour at next year’s World Cup in Russia.

The threat of supporter disorder was identified by the FA as one of the “principal risks and uncertainties” for the coming season in its annual report for the 2015-16 campaign, at the end of which England fans rioted at Euro 2016 and endured brutal beatings at the hands of Russian thugs.

The FA warned that a repeat of the ugly scenes in Marseille and Lille, where both England and Russia were almost expelled from the tournament, could also hit it in the pocket in terms of future sponsorship and broadcast revenue.

Its annual report was published on the day the BBC aired a documentary in which Russian hooligans warn the 2018 World Cup will be another “festival of violence”.

The FA report says the anti-social behaviour of some fans may cause it “reputational damage”, which in turn impacts its commercial appeal to sponsors and broadcasters.

But the threat of violence at the World Cup was dismissed yesterday by the president of Fifa amid a crackdown on football-related violence by Russian authorities.

Gianni Infantino said: “I’m not concerned about trouble and violence in 2018. I have full confidence in Russian authorities.”

The annual report also revealed the FA had been overtaken by the Rugby Football Union as the country’s biggest money-making national governing body.

Its turnover of £369.7 million was still a record and it should reclaim top spot from the RFU (£407.1million) this season, with the 2015 Rugby World Cup having almost doubled the latter’s revenue.

The FA also returned to profit last season, making £7 million following a £9 million loss during the previous campaign.