By Dmitriy Rogovitskiy
MOSCOW (Reuters) - The cheapest tickets for the 2017 Confederations Cup and the 2018 World Cup will go on sale only to Russian citizens, the Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said on Tuesday.
"FIFA met us half way. Category four tickets, which will be sold only to Russian supporters will be introduced," Mutko told a news conference.
"They are even cheaper than the tickets which were sold at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil," he said following a meeting between FIFA and the Russia 2018 Local Organising Committee.
Unlike the first three categories, tickets for category four will be fixed in roubles. The cheapest tickets on sale for the Confederations Cup will cost 960 roubles (11.42 pounds), while for the World Cup this figure will be 1280 roubles (15.23 pounds).
The cheapest tickets for foreigners at the Confederations Cup will be $70 for the group stages, while the most expensive will be $245 (187.901 pounds) for the final.
At the 2018 World Cup the cheapest tickets for foreigners will cost $105, while the most expensive will cost $1,100 (843.739 pounds) for the final.
According to Thierry Weil, FIFA's director of marketing, tickets for the Confederations Cup are expected to go on advance sale from 8 to 17 November. From December 1, these tickets will go on official sale for everyone. They will be on sale until January 18.
"The sale of tickets for the World Cup will start after the Confederations Cup. The tickets will only be able to be purchased on FIFA's official website www.fifa.com," Weil said.
The sports minister added that Russia would learn from the experience of Euro 2016 about working with and monitoring supporters.
Russian football fans were blamed for violence before the Euro 2016 match with England in Marseille on June 11. Around 20 supporters were deported to Russia, while three fans received prison sentences in France ranging from one to two years.
"Of course we will take into account the experience from Euro 2016. There were 28 of our observers there, including members from the security services."
"The Russian government has given all the necessary safety guarantees for the 2018 World Cup. We will do everything so that people from all countries will feel comfortable in Russia," Mutko added.
