Fan ID made compulsory for Russian Cup games at RPL grounds

Fan ID will be compulsory at Russian Cup matches played at the grounds of Russian Premier League clubs from 1 October, after Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed a government order extending the system.

Until now the fan card was required in the competition only for the final. It was not used in earlier rounds. It has also been needed for league games since the 2022/23 season and for the Super Cup.

The requirement covers home games of RPL sides in the cup. Clubs from the First and Second Leagues will not need it at their grounds. The cup is split into the RPL Path and the Regions Path, and the RPL clubs play a group stage followed by play-offs.

The Ministry of Sport said the aim was one set of rules at the same stadiums, whatever the competition. "The update will allow uniform rules of attendance to be applied at the same stadiums with top teams regardless of the tournament. Thus, spectators at Russian Cup matches at RPL clubs' home stadiums will be subject to the same procedure as at Russian championship matches," the ministry's press service said, as reported by RBC.

The ministry gave security as the reason. Kommersant quotes it as saying: "The practice of applying Fan ID shows that as attendance at games where the fan card is used rises, the number of violations at them falls."

By the ministry's figures, no mass breaches of public order were recorded last season. Violations of conduct rules fell by 13.8 per cent to 438. RPL attendance has grown from about 1 million in 2022/23 to more than 3.2 million in 2025/26.

Several RPL fan groups boycotted events where the system was introduced. Kommersant notes that a person barred from stadiums is not issued a card, and an existing card can be revoked once a ban is imposed.

Spartak are the holders of the Cup. Under Juan Carlos Carcedo they beat Krasnodar on penalties in last season's final.