18:56, 20 April 2019

Nagorno-Karabakh abolishes visa fee on eve of 2019 CONIFA Football Cup

A stadium in Stepanakert. February 2019. Photo by Alvard Grigoryan for the "Caucasian Knot"

It is expected that over 1000 foreign visitors will attend the CONIFA Football Cup to be hosted by Nagorno-Karabakh. Over 60 families voiced the desire to host guests of the event.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the Football Cup under the auspices of CONIFA will be hosted by Nagorno-Karabakh from June 3 to 15. The authorities have invited local residents to take part in the "Hospitable Family" programme and to host foreign guests in their houses and apartments, since hotels may not cope with a large number of fans.

The CONIFA (the Confederation of Independent Football Associations) is an organization established in 2013 and uniting teams of countries (often unrecognized states and autonomies) not officially included in FIFA. Football teams from South Ossetia, Abkhazia, and Nagorno-Karabakh took part in the first CONIFA World Cup held in 2014.

A large influx of tourists to Nagorno-Karabakh is expected during the CONIFA Football Cup, an official from the Nagorno-Karabakh government reported.

"The upcoming CONIFA Football Cup ... will be an unprecedented event for our republic in terms of the development of sports life and the development of tourism," declares Grigory Martirosyan, State Minister of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The CONIFA Football Cup has stimulated the development of private businesses, and people open hotels in the hope of good income, local residents report.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on April 20, 2019 at 11:59 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Alvard Grigoryan

Source: CK correspondent