Russia has been expelled from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar by FIFA after world governing body and European association UEFA issued a joint statement confirming that all Russian national teams and clubs have been suspended until further notice following the invasion of ukraine.
Amid growing pressure from European nations and the International Olympic Committee, FIFA and UEFA confirmed on Monday that Russia would not take part in the next World Cup qualifiers – Russia were due to face Poland in the semi-finals before a possible final against Sweden or the Czech Republic. Republic in March – and that the Russian women’s team would be withdrawn from the European Championships which would be held in England in July.
Spartak Moscow have also been dropped from the Europa League, meaning round-of-16 opponents RB Leipzig will be granted a bye to the quarter-finals of the competition.
In a separate move, UEFA have confirmed they are canceling their deal with sponsor Gazprom – the Russian energy company – which brings in €40m a year to the organisation.
UEFA’s decision comes after St Petersburg were stripped of the hosting rights for this season’s Champions League final, with Paris coming after the decision to move the showpiece away from the Russian city.
In a statement, FIFA and UEFA said: “Following the first decisions adopted by the FIFA Council and the UEFA Executive Committee, which provided for the adoption of additional measures, FIFA and UEFA have decided today together that all Russian teams, whether national representative teams or club teams, will be suspended from participating in FIFA and UEFA competitions until further notice.
“These decisions were adopted today by the Bureau of the FIFA Council and the UEFA Executive Committee, respectively the highest decision-making bodies of the two institutions on such urgent matters.
“Football is fully united here and in full solidarity with all those affected in Ukraine. Both presidents hope that the situation in Ukraine will improve significantly and quickly so that football can once again be a vehicle for unity and peace among peoples.”
Commenting on the decision to sever ties with Gazprom, UEFA said: “UEFA decided today to end its partnership with Gazprom in all competitions.
“The decision takes effect immediately and covers all existing agreements, including the UEFA Champions League, UEFA national team competitions and UEFA EURO 2024.”
Comments are closed.