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Summary
- FIFA has suspended Russia from the 2022 World Cup
- UEFA will not allow any Russian teams to play
- IOC pushes for ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes
Russia continues to invade Ukraine as peace talks between the two nations have failed in the first round. While Russia continues to bomb Ukraine, the sporting world has also decided to penalize Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
FIFA was initially inclined to allow Russia to participate in the 2022 World Cup even with the invasion but things have changed suddenly as FIFA has now confirmed that it has banned Russia from taking part in the 2022 World Cup due to its invasion of Ukraine.
Russia was set to play a World Cup qualifier against Poland on March 24 but Poland refused to play Russia due to the invasion.
Now with FIFA suspending Russia, we need to wait and see if Poland is given a bye to the final playoff. FIFA’s decision to suspend Russia from the 2022 World Cup is arguably the biggest hit that Russia has taken in the sporting world.
UEFA Bans All Russian Teams
UEFA announced last week that it decided to shift the Champions League final from Russia to France due to the invasion. UEFA has also taken a strong decision as it will no longer allow Russian teams to participate in any of its UEFA Europa tournaments.
Top teams like Spartak Moscow will no longer be allowed to play and this will be a big blow to Russian football clubs and their fans.
UEFA has also decided to drop one of its main sponsors which is Russian energy giant Gazprom. FIFA and UEFA have confirmed the ban on Russia and Russian teams till further notice.
IOC pushes for Ban on Russian and Belarusian Athletes
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is also discussing imposing a ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes and banning them from all Olympic events. The IOC said that their executive committee is keen on imposing a ban on Russia in order to protect the integrity of global sporting events and provide safety and security to all participants involved.
The Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) responded soon after and said it disagreed with the IOC’s decision to push for a ban as it violated the Olympic charter and the IOC regulations.
