Russia's LGBT Network has issued a warning to England fans travelling to the World Cup about the possibility of homophobic abuse in the country.

There are currently no laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation in Russia, and the rights group has urged LGBT tourists to exercise caution during their stay.

"The level of hatred towards LGBT people is huge in Russia; our research shows that the number of hate crimes is growing constantly," The Sun quotes the organisation as saying.

"The authorities were promoting this hatred themselves, so now they will have to deal with the consequences. I think all LGBT tourists visiting the World Cup should be aware about the environment here.

"It's very different from UK, and people really can be attacked if someone thinks they belong to the LGBT community or if they carry a rainbow flag."

The warning comes amid claims from the Cossack volunteers, who have vowed to patrol the streets of Rostov to hunt down gay England fans and alert police if they spot them kissing in public.