FA Cup: Chelsea set to have full support at Wembley semi-final

Chelsea can now expect to have full support at their FA Cup semi-final against Crystal Palace at Wembley.

The Football Association (FA) says there have been talks with the government on amendments to the club's operating licence.

It would allow tickets to be sold as normal for the game, which is due to be played on the weekend of 16-17 April.

Chelsea are currently banned from selling new tickets due to sanctions against Russian owner Roman Abramovich.

The 55-year-old's assets were frozen by the government on 10 March because of his alleged strong ties to Russian president Vladimir Putin. Abramovich has denied having these links.

Abramovich put the club up for sale on 2 March, five days after Russia invaded Ukraine.

The club were unable to sell their entire 4,500 ticket allocation for Saturday's FA Cup quarter-final at Middlesbrough and it meant they were backed by around 700 supporters who had got their tickets before the sanctions were imposed.

But an FA spokesperson said English football's governing body hopes to have sell-out crowds at both semi-finals.

«This includes tickets for Chelsea supporters for their match against Crystal Palace,» the spokesperson added. «We are working with the government on a method to achieve this whilst respecting the sanctions that are currently in place on Chelsea.»

Earlier, Julian Knight, the chair of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport committee, called for changes to the special licence imposed on the Stamford Bridge club.

«Chelsea is more than just its owner, it's a living organism with huge importance to its fans and community,» Knight said.

«It was understandable that, at short notice, last week's game against Middlesbrough went ahead without Chelsea fans.

»But with this much notice, the FA