The far-right leader of the Kremlin-backed Russian football supporters' association has been expelled from France, along with 19 other Russian fans. Alexander Shprygin tweeted pictures from Nice Airport as he boarded the Aeroflot flight to Moscow.

Shprygin was among 43 Russian fans detained on 14 June, as they made their way to watch their home country's second match against Slovakia, which they lost 2-1.

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It followed the violence before and after at the game between England and Russia in Marseille, which left around 35 people injured, including a 50-year-old English fan who was left in a critical condition with severe brain injuries after being attacked with iron bars.

Film footage taken by the hooligans attacking people later appeared on numerous websites.

Three Russian fans were jailed for one year, 18 months and two years respectively by a Marseille court for planning acts intended to harm people and destroy property on 16 June. A further 12 who were arrested following the trouble were released without charge.

Much of the violence was due to Russian fans, Marseille prosecutor Brice Robin said, adding that some of them belonged to "Orel Butchers" Lokomotiv Moscow supporters' group and others to Spartak Moscow's "Gladiators" group. "These people claimed belonging to a 'Tour de France of violence'", he said.

Five England fans were also jailed for throwing bottles at police and a sixth jailed in connection with the violence. Shprygin's All-Russia Supporters Union is backed by the Kremlin. He is reported to hold far-right views and has been photographed giving a Nazi salute.

Throughout his detention in France, he tweeted pictures from the detention centre in Marseille where he was held along with other Russian fans. They could be seen watching other games on the TV and sunbathing.

Calling the decision to remove him from France as "pure hellish arbitrariness", he complained to Russia's Tass news agency that he had "paid for hotel accommodations, air tickets, tickets to the match against Wales."

The arrests angered the Russian government, which summoned the French ambassador to protest.

Calling the fighting "a disgrace", Vladimir Putin said that he did not "understand how 200 of our fans could beat up several thousand English fans". He also called on Russian fans to behave appropriately when they face Wales on 20 June.

"I hope that there are sober-minded people among them who really love sport and understand that any violation is not supporting their favourite team but damaging to the team and to sport," he said.

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