FIFA President Gianni Infantino has also made it known to the Kremlin that the ban on Russia having its part in international football competitions should be eased, but Ukraine has responded sharply to his words calling them irresponsible.
On Monday in an interview, Infantino stated that not including Russia in football worldwide since the beginning of the war in Ukraine in February 2022 had accomplished nothing but instead had caused frustration and hatred. He wanted the Russian players who include children to be allowed to play internationally as this might alleviate tensions.
In reaction to the remarks, the Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that Russia was happy with the stance by Infantino and was long overdue. He also stated that Russian footballers and the national team must be granted their rights wholly and hoped that soon some formal talks have to be conducted in FIFA on the reinstatement.
Since the full-scale military operation in Ukraine was launched, Russia is mostly excluded not just in international sporting events, but also in the arena of international sports. Russian teams have at the top level of men football been limited to friendly matches, the latest to have been played with Chile and Peru in November. Russia is the host of the 2018 world cup and under Infantino, the first term FIFA president, it got to the quarterfinals.
The executive committee of UEFA has the powers to reintroduce Russia in the competitions in Europe and that will be done during a meeting to be held in Brussels on the 11th of February. The President of Uefa Aleksander Ceferin has stated many times that the war would have to be over before Russia can come back. Further in 2023, UEFA thought of briefly permitting Russia to take part in Under-17 contests, yet changed the mind following the resistance of a number of national unions.
Infantino had an ugly reaction on Ukraine. According to Sports Minister Matvii Bidnyi they were irresponsible and infantile, referring to the deaths of hundreds of Ukrainian athletes and coaches in the war. The comments were also criticized by the Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, who said that a large number of Ukrainian children could never enjoy playing football due to the war.
In other sporting events, the wider bans have just been lifted, with some Russian athletes in other sports being recently permitted to play under a neutral flag.