Nigeria fans banned from entering Croatia game with 'lucky' live chickens

Nigeria fans have been banned from tacking live chickens into their game with Croatia by Russian authorities.

The Super Eagles begin their 2018 campaign with a clash against the likes of Luka Modric and Mateo Kovačić in Kaliningrad tomorrow evening, and fans had asked if they could bring their ‘lucky’ chickens into the game.

Whilst the World Cup is a celebration of different cultures, this was a step too far for the authorities and Andrei Ermak, minister of culture for Kaliningrad, revealed his department had received numerous requests from fans, but they had been rejected.

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“Fans from Nigeria asked if it’s possible to go to the stadium with a chicken – it’s their symbol. We told them that it is not possible,” Ermak told the Interfax News Agency.

But if they are supporting Nigeria elsewhere in the city – and not at the ground – Ermak said they would be happy to advise supporters where to go with their green and white painted creatures.

“We will of course advise them where chickens can be taken,” he added. “We are ready to satisfy the most eccentric inquiries.”

SLIDESHOW: The stadiums of the Russian World Cup (Click image below)

Nigeria are playing in Group D, where as well as Croatia, they face Iceland in Volgograd and Argentina in St Petersburg.

It remains to be seen whether the authorities in those cities will be more lenient than in Kaliningrad , although it would appear unlikely.