FIFA, the world football association, has not yet suspended the Russian association following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. President Putin’s country is no longer allowed to be called Russia, but is described as the Football Association of Russia. Also, the Russian flag will no longer be seen at international matches and the national anthem will no longer be played.
The latter measures resemble the regulations of the International Olympic Committee, which, since a doping scandal, has only welcomed athletes from Russia under the flag of the country’s Olympic committee.
Cezary Kulesza, president of the Polish Football Association, called FIFA’s decision “totally unacceptable”. “We are not interested in participating in this sham game. Our position remains intact: the Polish national team will NOT PLAY against Russia, whatever the name of the team.”
Russian football teams and the country’s national team must play their home games on a neutral ground without an audience. The decision means, among other things, that the matches from the play-offs for World Cup qualification will not be played in Moscow in any case. Poland, the first opponent in it, has already refused to play against Russia, regardless of location. The same declared Sweden and the Czech Republic, Russia’s opponents when it beats Poland. England’s national football team will also refuse to play against Russia for the time being.
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