Russian men’s national soccer team.Photo: Alexander Demianchuk/TASS via Getty
The Czech Republic, Poland, Sweden, and England are refusing to play Russia in the 2022World Cupqualifiers next month amid the country’songoing invasion in Ukraine.
Despite FIFA’s recent penalties against Russia for the World Cup — neutral matches and a new name for the Russian team — the four nations are refusing to meet the Russians on the soccer field.
On Sunday, Cezary Kulesza, president of Poland’s soccer federation, called FIFA’s response “totally unacceptable,” standing firm on their decision not to play Russia.
“We are not interested in participating in this game of appearances,” Kulesza wrote onTwitter. “Our stance remains intact: Polish National Team will NOT PLAY with Russia, no matter what the name of the team is.”
The same day, theCzechnational team announced in astatement: “The Czech FA executive committee, staff members and players of the national team agreed it’s not possible to play against the Russian national team in the current situation, not even on the neutral venue. We all want the war to end as soon as possible.”
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The Swedish Football Association released a statement Saturday, writing onTwitter, “The men’s national team will not play against Russia – regardless of where the match is played. The Federal Board also urges FIFA to cancel the play-off matches in March in which Russia participates.”
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On Sunday, FIFA — international soccer’s governing body — penalized Russia for the country’s war while calling for “urgent restoration of peace and for constructive dialogue to commence immediately.”
In apress release, the organization banned the country’s name, flag, and anthem for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar as well as moved matches out of Russia to neutral territory.
Russia’s team will now compete under the name “Football Union of Russia,” similar to the country’s athletes competing in the Olympics and Paralympics as the"Russian Olympic Committee"as ananti-doping penalty.
The response came afterseveral countries pressuredFIFA to take action amid the crisis.
Last Thursday, FIFA released astatementcondemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while announcing the organization would simply be monitoring the situation as it relates to the World Cup.
source: people.com
