The Russian aggression in Ukraine is having a negative impact on the country’s sports arena. In the meantime, various organizations have imposed various bans on Russian stadiums. They have been banned from the Olympics, from rugby to football.
Meanwhile, athletes from around the world have spoken out against Russia’s atrocities. This time a big name has been added to the list. Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ronaldo strongly condemns Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. Like the rest of the world, he flew the flag of peace, not war. In a post on Instagram, he wrote, “We need to create a beautiful world for children.” Praying for world peace. I want peace, not war.
Ronaldo’s former club Real Madrid teammate was Ukrainian goalkeeper Andrei Lunin. The star of English club Manchester United has appealed for peace while standing by the side of his teammate.
Russia’s national team and club FIFA and UEFA will not be able to take part in any event due to the military attack in Ukraine. The two governing bodies of world and European football announced the decision in a joint statement on Monday (February 26th).
The statement said the ban would continue until further notice. As a result of the ban, the Russian boys team will not be able to play in the play-offs of the World Cup qualifiers in Qatar. Their girls will not be able to play in the 2022 European Championship.
Earlier, FIFA banned Russia from playing flags, national anthems and home venues, but this time it has banned football completely.
As a result, Russian women will not be able to participate in the euro this year. Not only that, the men will not be able to play in the World Cup qualifier against Poland in March. Russia was scheduled to play Poland at home on March 24, according to Qatar’s World Cup qualifiers. If Russia had won the match, they would have faced Sweden or the Czech Republic on March 29.
Earlier, after the attack on Ukraine, Poland, Sweden and the Czech Republic took a stand against hosting a qualifying match in Russia. The Football Federation of the three countries later announced that they would not play against Russia. Not even in a neutral venue.
However, European football’s governing body UEFA last Friday (February 25) instructed clubs and national teams in Russia and Ukraine to play their home matches at neutral venues outside the region until further notice.
Russia will play their matches in a neutral venue, FIFA said in a statement. In that case they faced obstacles only from the national anthem and the flag. But this time Russia’s name was erased from football.
They also confirmed the ban on participation of all athletes from Russia and Belarus.
Iceland, meanwhile, has already refused to play a scheduled match against Russia in June. In addition, several European footballs have already boycotted Russia. The International Olympic Committee has also boycotted.
