Prince William to join Man Utd supporters in Rome

PRINCE William will be among the 30,000 United fans hoping to roar the reds onto victory tonight in the Champions League final.

The Prince, who is president of the Football Association, will be in Rome for the clash between Manchester United and Barcelona.

We are now just hours away from the match which will see some of Man Utd's biggest names including Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and Ryan Giggs battling for a win.

Ahead of the kick-off Prince William, who is a keen Aston Villa, supporter will meet King Juan Carlos of Spain, who will cheer on United's opponents.

A royal source said: "He's there in his official capacity as president of the Football Association - but it's not exactly a bad job.

"I'm sure he'll be wishing it was Aston Villa he was watching - even though he'll be cheering on Manchester United."

A total of 20,000 Manchester United fans have tickets to watch Sir Alex Ferguson's team bid to become the first team to defend its Champions League title since the tournament was rebranded from the European Cup.

Another 10,000 Man Utd are expected to be in town despite pleas from authorties for fans not to travel without a ticket.

Authorities in Rome are bracing themselves for a similar number of Spanish fans, with fears that the high number of ticketless supporters could lead to trouble before kick-off.

To avoid violence, city officials have banned the sale of alcohol around the stadium and in airports and stations until Thursday morning.

HIGH SPIRITS: Fans in Rome look forward to tonight's match

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