NEARLY 40 Bradford City fans, who are banned from matches for football disorder, will have to surrender their passports today, ahead of two potentially explosive England fixtures.

Police forces are putting extra measures in place to ensure known troublemakers are prevented from travelling to the England games in the Republic of Ireland and the European Championships qualifier in Slovenia.

Key to the prevention tactics is the enforcing of Football Banning Orders, imposed on fans who have been involved in disorder, to stop them attending matches.

Anyone on such an order has been written to by police to inform them that they need to hand over their passports at a police station.

The deadline to do so for the Ireland game, which takes place in Dublin on Sunday, is today. Individuals with orders have another week to surrender their passports for the Slovenia game, which is in Ljubljana on Sunday, June 14.

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They will also have to report at police stations on the matchdays.

West Yorkshire Police's Football Intelligence Officer, PC Paul Barclay, said: "Football Banning Orders are a vital tool in reducing crime and disorder around fixtures by allowing us to prevent those previously involved in causing disorder from attending matches.

“There are currently 39 Bradford City supporters who are subject to football banning orders and we will be collecting passports from them.

"They will also be required to report at a nominated police station on the match day for the Republic of Ireland fixture.”

Bradford City banned three fans in March. The club banned two of them for five years: a man who was already subject to a Football Banning Order who threatened a steward with foul and abusive language when he asked him not to drink alcohol within sight of the pitch, and a fan who ran on to the pitch during the home game against Reading. A fan who sprayed a steward with tomato ketchup at the same match was banned until the end of June.

In West Yorkshire, 59 Leeds United fans are also subject to Football Banning Orders, along with 39 from Huddersfield Town and 11 from Halifax Town.

Nationally, there are 1,875 individuals affected by banning orders, including 1,382 who possess passports.

In North Yorkshire, a total of 16 individuals are subject to banning orders and will have to surrender their passports, which will be returned to them after the Slovenia game.

Efforts to keep troublemakers away have been stepped up after a deterioration in the behaviour of some fans following England.