England Fans May Have Flags Confiscated at World Cup Opener

England fans face having flags confiscated when they attend their opening game of the World Cup against Croatia at Dallas Stadium on Wednesday.

The England Supporters Club (ESC) is understood to have been advised by stadium officials that fans will not be allowed to hang flags over the LED advertising boards that surround the pitch, with only small flags to be allowed into the ground, which must be hung on rails behind the goals.

The ESC has arranged for several large banners and flags to be displayed behind the goals, but casual supporters attempting to bring a flag into the ground are likely to have them confiscated.

Fifa sources said the ban on hanging flags over LED signage was due to “safety and security reasons”.

A number of Dutch and Japanese fans had flags confiscated at Dallas Stadium when attending the 2-2 draw on Sunday, but there have been no issues bringing them in at other grounds.

Fifa’s tournament guide for fans states: “Small flags, banners and posters made of a fire-resistant material are allowed in the stadium. Larger flags, banners, posters or instruments must be approved in advance.”

Fifa also prohibits flags “that are of a political, offensive and/or discriminatory nature” and on Monday won a court hearing in Los Angeles to prevent Iran supporters from taking the pre-revolutionary flag into their matches, classifying it as a political symbol.

Ronan Evain, executive director of Football Supporters Europe, who was at the first game in Dallas, complained of a lack of consistency in enforcing Fifa’s guidelines. “You were not really allowed to bring a flag in, or at least to show it, which is inconsistent with most Fifa rules and regulations, but also what was allowed at previous tournaments,” Evain said. “Most of the flags were removed by the staff.

“At a lot of the stadiums it hasn’t been a problem, so it’s hard to understand what is the actual policy and what is improvisation by the staff locally with the rules that they now have. The broader problem – and I think it’s a demonstration of how much Fifa has little control over this tournament – is that there’s no consistent rule, and when you look at what Fifa has published, there’s a code of conduct that is very broad.

“But it never clarified a lot of things, like what sort of symbols are allowed and not allowed? Are you able to bring a flag of your region or city or club? A lot of this is still up in the air, and I think there’s a bit of learning by the venues, but also, again, inconsistency.”