February 28, (THEWILL) – On Sunday, FIFA backed down from an instant expulsion of Russia from World Cup qualification, but acknowledged it was still a possibility, instead determining that the team could compete under the “RFU” name of its football federation, the Russian Football Union.
The FIFA Council’s Bureau, which includes the presidents of the six regional football confederations, unanimously decided that the Russian flag and anthem could not be connected with the squad.
A formal statement from the world football governing body read: “FIFA will continue its ongoing dialogue with the IOC, UEFA and other sport organizations to determine any additional measures or sanctions, including a potential exclusion from competitions, that shall be applied in the near future should the situation not be improving rapidly.”
The verdict follows a ruling issued by the Court of Arbitration for Sport prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which sanctioned Russia for concealing the investigation into state-sponsored doping. The Russians had to compete as the Russian Olympic Committee squad at the previous two Olympics as a result of that ruling.
FIFA had put off enforcing the ban on Russia competing under its own name until after a potential World Cup qualifying. The football governing body further stated that the RFU team can only play on neutral ground and in front of an empty stadium.
It was unclear whether the decision to use the RFU abbreviation would please Poland, which announced on Saturday that it would refuse to play Russia in a World Cup qualifying playoff semifinal on March 24 in Moscow, as THEWILL reported.
The winner of the playoff will face either Sweden or the Czech Republic on March 29 to determine who will proceed to the World Cup in Qatar from November 21 to December 18.
On Sunday, the Czech Republic joined Poland and Sweden in refusing to play Russia.
In a separate announcement, the English Football Association stated that its national teams will refuse to play Russia for the “foreseeable future.” Russia has qualified for England’s Women’s European Championship, which will be held in June.
The decision was made “out of solidarity with Ukraine and to wholeheartedly condemn the atrocities being committed by the Russian leadership.” according to the English Football Association.
Aleksandr Dyukov, the president of the RFU and a member of the UEFA executive committee, is the CEO of a subsidiary of state-owned energy giant Gazprom.
Noel Le Graet, the head of the French football association, told the newspaper Le Parisien on Sunday that he is leaning toward Russia being excluded from the World Cup.
“The world of sport, in particular football, cannot remain neutral,” said Le Graet, a member of FIFA’s ruling council and a close ally of the organization’s president, Gianni Infantino.
If the Polish, Swedish, and Czech federations do not play Russia, they could face disciplinary action as well as fines and compensation, according to a stringent interpretation of FIFA’s World Cup regulations.
There is some precedent to outrightly banning countries on the basis of war. When the United Nations imposed sanctions when war broke out in the Balkans in 1992, FIFA and UEFA banned Yugoslavia from international events.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
