Rome authorities ban alcohol

Authorities in Rome have enforced a blanket ban on the sale of alcohol in a bid to stave off the threat of trouble between Manchester United and Barcelona fans.

United take on Barca in Wednesday’s Champions League final in Rome with more than 67,000 fans expected to arrive in the Italian capital in the next two days.

In a bid to avoid incidents, local authorities have banned the sale of alcohol throughout the city and in airports and stations from 11pm on Tuesday until 6am on Thursday morning.

“It will not be a militarised city,” said Rome prefect Giovanni Pecorari. “All the necessary measures have been taken in order to give the best possible image of this city.”

Rome mayor Gianni Alemanno also believes forged tickets could pose a significant problem.

“Our biggest worry will be the 5,000 fans without a ticket or with false tickets,” said Alemanno.

Pecoraro confirmed today authorities have confiscated printers and false tickets and added: “There are no more tickets left to sell, hence, the tickets that are circulating are false.”

Alemanno stated that Italian authorities are working hard to avoid any incidents between the fans.

“I have asked (interior) minister Roberto Maroni to have maximum attention from the security officers to avoid any incidents,” he said.

“I want to thank them in advance for the work they will carry out.

“To prevent any incidents we have spoken to Rome football fans and asked them to show maximum solidarity.”