Russia will have to play the game or the home games of the qualifying playoffs for the 2022 World Cup on neutral ground. Furthermore, the selection will take the field under the name of “Football Union of Russia (RFU)” and not “Russia”. No Russian flag or anthem will be used in matches involving teams from the Russian Federation. These are the first measures adopted by FIFA after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the consequent war. “FIFA will continue its ongoing dialogue with IOC, UEFA and other sporting organizations to determine any additional measures or sanctions, including a potential exclusion from competitions, which will be applied in the near future should the situation not improve rapidly. The Bureau of the Fifa Council remains on standby to take any of these decisions “, explained the international football association.
The first step does not satisfy Poland. The Polish Football Association declares that “following Russia’s brutal aggression against Ukraine and the ongoing war, it does not see the possibility of competing with the Russian representation in the play-offs for promotion to the Qatar World Cup in 2022, regardless of the team name. composed of Russian players and the place where the game is played “.
“Faced with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, condemned almost all over the world, this is the only decision we can make. A performance in a match with the Russian national team would be shameful not only for our representatives, but also for the ‘entire football community, it would be a denial of solidarity with the Ukrainian nation. As a football association, we refuse to participate in the play-offs with the Russian team. At the same time, we ask the FIFA authorities to react immediately to the brutal violence that we observe daily on the territory of independent Ukraine. If FIFA’s human rights policy is more than just words on paper, now is the time to put it into action, excluding the Russian Football Association from qualifying for the Qatar World Cup in 2022 “, concludes the statement. of the Polish Football Association.
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