ABU DHABI, December – Fans at the FIFA Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi on December 8-18 will have to abstain from drinking alcohol and kissing in public, in keeping with Muslim sensitivities, a newspaper said on Monday.
"The FIFA World Cup organising committee has issued a long list of prohibitions which will be circulated among fans from outside the country, including the ban on drinking alcohol and kissing on the streets," said Emarat Al-Yom.
The rules, printed on leaflets and to be distributed to fans upon arrival in the United Arab Emirates, also warned that using drugs whether in public or private areas would result in prosecution.
"We are a Muslim country that has its own customs and traditions which should be preserved. Something like this should not anger the supporters," the organising committee’s spokeswoman, Shaza al-Rumaithy, told the daily.
World football governing body FIFA "supports" such measures by any country hosting an international championship, she said.
Italy’s Inter Milan and South Korea’s Seongnam are among the clubs taking part this year in the tournament for the winners of the world’s continental championships.
