Global football governing body FIFA and the European body UEFA on Monday decided to suspend Russia and club teams from the country until further notice, reacting sternly to the country’s invasion of Ukraine. The decision puts the spotlight on Russia’s participation in this year’s FIFA World Cup in Qatar even as several nations, including Poland, are refusing to play Russia in the World Cup qualifiers.
“Football is fully united here and in full solidarity with all the people affected in Ukraine,” FIFA and UEFA said in a joint statement.
“Both presidents hope that the situation in Ukraine will improve significantly and rapidly so that football can again be a vector for unity and peace among people.”
UEFA also ended its sponsorship with Russian energy giant Gazprom.
Earlier in the day, FIFA ordered Russia to play matches without its flag and anthem at neutral venues, warning the country could be excluded from competitions. However, the global body has gone ahead and suspended Russia, which hosted the FIFA World Cup in 2018.
FIFA AND UEFA ACT AFTER IOC’S RECOMMENDATION
The decision comes shortly after the International Olympic Committee recommended bans on Russian and Belorussian athletes from major tournaments even as international sports bodies moved to further isolate Russia.
The IOC said it was needed to “protect the integrity of global sports competitions and for the safety of all the participants.”
With a direct impact on Russia playing World Cup qualifiers in March, FIFA’s decision could be telling on Russia men’s team’s chances of playing the global showpiece latter this year in Qatar.
The IOC also went directly after President Vladimir Putin, who turned the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics into a personal project. Putin’s golden Olympic Order, which was awarded in 2001, has been withdrawn, the IOC said in a statement.
The Olympic body’s call also applied to athletes and official from Belarus, which has abetted Russia’s invasion by allowing its territory to be used to station troops and launch military attacks.
The IOC said it acted “with a heavy heart,” but noted that the impact of war on Ukrainian sports and athletes who cannot now take part in competitions outweighed the potential damage done to athletes from Russia and Belarus.
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