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‘Pariah state’: Russia faces sporting fallout over Ukraine war
The consequences of the war are rippling through the sports world, as athletes and fans express solidarity with Ukraine.
Sports
In 2018, Russian football basked in international sporting acclaim – hosting a World Cup that was admired off the pitch and was successful on it as the national team reached the quarter-finals for the first time in post-Soviet history.
However, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, European football clubs are now cutting ties with Russian companies, sporting organisations are moving events out of the country, and players and fans around the world are sending messages of support for Ukraine.
As long as the war continues, there are likely to be more consequences for Russian sport, both in the short and long terms.
On Saturday, Poland and Sweden announced their refusal to play Russia in March’s final playoff qualifiers for the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
Polish President Andrzej Duda agreed with the decision, writing on social media: “You don’t play with bandits!”
There is now growing pressure on world football’s governing body, FIFA, and the European regulator, UEFA, to ban Russia and its clubs from international competitions.
It is a far cry from 2018 when Russian President Vladimir Putin was pictured smiling at World Cup games alongside world leaders and FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
“We also know that many people left Russia thinking ‘what a great place and what a great country’ and that is illustrative of how Putin has used sport to manipulate people’s perceptions of the country,” Simon Chadwick, professor of Eurasian sport at the Emlyon Business School, told Al Jazeera.