The man, who is yet to be named by police, was arrested in Worcestershire on Friday before being charged by detectives last night, the Met added.

A murder investigation was launched after Michael Dye, 44, was found injured on Tuesday evening near Gate C of the north London stadium, before England played Wales in a Euro 2012 qualifier.

He was taken to Northwick Park Hospital but later died. A post-mortem examination showed the cause of death to be blunt trauma to the back of the head.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said the suspect is being held in custody at West Mercia police station and is due to appear in court tomorrow.

Six men who were initially arrested in connection with the death have now all been released without charge, he added.

"We have been informed that a 41-year-old man has been charged with manslaughter following the death of Michael Dye," said the spokesman.

"We are awaiting confirmation of his details and where he will be appearing in court on Monday."

Acting Detective Chief Inspector Sheila Stewart said the incident "emerged from a moment of brutal violence with catastrophic consequences".

Thousands of tributes have been paid to the avid Cardiff fan on a dedicated Facebook page, with several messages referring to his wife Nathalie and children.

There was applause for Dye before yesterday's npower Championship match against Doncaster, while both teams wore black armbands.

Club chairman Gethin Jenkins said Dye was "clearly a committed and passionate supporter" and that his death was "extremely sad".

The Daily Mail last week reported that Dye wrote on an internet forum that he was banned from attending matches in 1986 after a "pitch invasion and fisticuffs" at Peterborough.

The newspaper said he was banned for nine months and fined £425 and quoted him as writing on a website: "Happy days - wouldn't change a thing."

And in July last year, he was arrested for obstructing a police officer at Swindon train station as he travelled to a football friendly, the paper reported.