Russia to grant visa-free entrance to Fan ID holders till year end: Putin

MOSCOW - Russia will provide visa-free entrance to the country for foreign football fans with relevant IDs until the end of 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Sunday.

"I think that we will provide a visa-free entrance to Russia for foreign fans, who currently have fan IDs, until the end of 2018. This will be a multiple entry visa-free regime," Putin told reporters following the awards ceremony of the World Cup tournament that just concluded.

Foreign spectators with an official Fan ID issued by Russian authorities are allowed to enter Russia visa-free. Fan IDs were previously set to be valid from June 4 to July 25.

Putin also thanked all foreign fans who came to Russia for the tournament for showing "the best qualities of sports and football fans."

France defeated Croatia 4-2 in the final played in the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, claiming its second World Cup title.