UEFA and FIFA suspend Russia from all competitions

Russia has been suspended from all UEFA and FIFA competitions, including the World Cup playoffs, the governing bodies said.

The continental bosses UEFA and the global governors of FIFA have jointly decided to temporarily exclude Russia from all club and national matches.

Both UEFA and FIFA have banned Russia from all matches until “football can once again be a vector for unity and peace between people”.

A joint statement by UEFA and FIFA confirmed the move, which will further isolate Russia’s sporting situation in the face of Ukraine’s invasion.

“Following the initial decisions of the FIFA Council and the UEFA Executive Committee, which provided for the introduction of additional measures, FIFA and UEFA have today jointly decided that all Russian teams, whether national representative teams or club teams, will be excluded from participation in FIFA and UEFA competitions until further notice,” the statement said.

“These decisions were taken today by the Bureau of the FIFA Council and the UEFA Executive Committee, the highest decision-making bodies of both institutions in such urgent matters.

“Football is completely united here and stands in full solidarity with all affected people in Ukraine. Both presidents hope that the situation in Ukraine will improve significantly and quickly so that football can once again be a bearer of unity and peace between people.”

With Spartak Moscow’s elimination from the Europa League, RB Leipzig has a direct entry into the quarter-finals of Europe’s second highest league.

European football bosses UEFA also confirmed the termination of their sponsorship deals with Russian energy company Gazprom, worth around £34 million per season.

“UEFA has today decided to end its partnership with Gazprom in all competitions,” UEFA said in a statement.

“The decision takes effect immediately and covers all existing agreements, including the UEFA Champions League, UEFA national team competitions and UEFA EURO 2024.”

The interruption is likely to result in Russia’s semi-final in the World Cup play-off being cancelled next month.

On Monday, the Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee issued a recommendation to international sports federations to exclude Russian and Belarusian athletes, officials and teams from international competitions wherever possible.

With this decision by the IOC Executive Board, FIFA was de facto given the green light to go even further than before and exclude Russia from the World Cup.

The IOC said the recommendation for exclusion was made “to protect the integrity of global sporting competitions and the safety of all participants.”

This is the strongest move yet by the international sports community to isolate Russia from global competition.

World Rugby condemned Russia’s “aggressive invasion” and added that Belarus had supported the country’s actions. The governing body has therefore decided to suspend both countries from all international rugby activities and cross-border club rugby activities with immediate effect “until further notice”.

In addition, the Russian Rugby Federation’s membership in world rugby was suspended.

The British Olympic Association also called in a statement for Russia and Belarus to be excluded from all elite sports competitions.

FIFA had come under criticism for its original decision on Sunday evening to allow Russia to continue to participate in the play-offs for the men’s World Cup, albeit on neutral ground and under the flag of the Russian Football Union.

Manchester City’s Ukrainian defender Oleksandr Zinchenko called on Instagram for Russia to be excluded from all international sports federations and for the country’s athletes to be banned from participating in international competitions.

The world football players’ union FIFPRO also called for the exclusion of the RFU.

“Russia’s aggression and the joint response of democracies around the world have shown that the defense of human dignity and the rule of law are being put to the test,” FIFPRO said in a statement.

“Football and sport have a responsibility to respond accordingly. The previous policy of political neutrality has not stood the test of time and today must mark a turning point in the way sport engages with society and how it stands up for democracy and human rights.

“There is an urgent need for a new, consistently implemented approach that builds on the declared values ​​of sport.”

Already on Monday, the Scottish Football Association, the Irish Football Association and the Irish Football Federation joined the English and Welsh Football Associations in rejecting a meeting with Russia in any kind of international match.

The SFA and FAI also offered their support to the Ukrainian FA in organising matches scheduled against the team later this year.

Scotland will host Ukraine in the World Cup play-off semi-finals in March and in the Nations League in June, with an away match scheduled for September.

Unless current UEFA guidelines change, the Republic will face Ukraine twice in the Nations League in June, first at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin and then on neutral ground.

The Formula 1 governing body was due to hold an emergency meeting on Tuesday to discuss the future of Russian driver Nikita Mazepin.

The President of the Ukrainian Automobile Federation, Leonid Kostyuchenko, has called on the FIA ​​to ban all Russian and Belarusian drivers from participating in races outside their own country.

Ukrainian tennis star Elina Svitolina put pressure on the sport’s governing bodies to exclude Russian and Belarusian athletes from the competition.

“We Ukrainian players have called on ATP, WTA and ITF to follow the IOC’s recommendations and accept Russian or Belarusian nationals only as neutral athletes, without displaying any national symbols, colors, flags or anthems,” Svitolina posted on Instagram.

“Therefore, I would like to announce that I will not participate in any match tomorrow in Monterrey or any other match against Russian or Belarusian tennis players until our organizations have made this necessary decision.

“I do not blame any of the Russian athletes. They are not responsible for the invasion of our homeland.”

“I would also like to express my gratitude to all actors, especially the Russians and Belarusians who have courageously declared their position against the war. Their support is crucial.”

The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) has suspended all Russian and Belarusian national teams and clubs from all competitions until further notice.

Russia has also lost the right to host the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship.

“The IIHF strongly condemns the use of military force and calls for the use of diplomatic means to resolve the conflict,” the IIHF said in a statement.