Before

the World Cup began, tom tugendhat, the ambitious chair of the Commons foreign affairs select committee, warned that english fans might be in danger travelling to russia. he described one of the cities where england was due to play as a ‘hotbed of russian nationalism’. In fact, there have been no major incidents of england fans being mistreated. how ironic that the only serious trouble concerned an england supporter who was fined by a Moscow court for defacing a statue in honour of a dead russian footballer. the 20-year-old yob went to a £26,000-a-year prep school in Northamptonshire and is the son of the Queen Mother’s former equerry. tugendhat owes the russian authorities an apology.