Foreign footballers to carry ID cards

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Professionals from outside the EU playing in the UK will have to apply for a card when they renew their visas, the Home Office said.

That could include millionaire Premier League stars such as Carlos Tevez from Argentina, Didier Drogba from Ivory Coast and Brazilian Robinho.

Currently holders of student and marriage visas are required to apply for a card when it expires. A total of 130,000 visas have been issued since the scheme was launched in November 2008.

But from today all skilled workers, as well as religious ministers and professional sportsmen and women, are included.

Every applicant has to go to the passport office and have their fingerprints and face scan taken. Some post offices also offer the service.

As well as the biometric data, the card carries personal information and details of the holder's employment rights.

Immigration minister Phil Woolas said: "Identity cards are a secure and simple way for foreign nationals to prove they are entitled to live, work or study in the UK.

"The biometric data contained on the card ties migrants to one identity and prevents those here illegally from benefiting from the privileges of life in Britain."