The measures include Russia playing home matches on neutral ground
FIFA has ordered Russia to play matches on neutral territory and without fans in a series of actions in response to the military operation in Ukraine.
Russia will compete in all FIFA competitions, which may include the Qatar World Cup 2022 in November and December, under the title “Russia’s Football Union”.
Russia’s flag and anthem will also not be used in any matches organized by the governing body of world football.
The matches in question will probably start with the World Cup finals in March, which would have been held in Moscow.
Russia is scheduled to play at home against Poland on March 24, with the winners hosting the winners of a simultaneous semi-final between Sweden and the Czech Republic.
The national football federations of Poland and the two nations that Russia could potentially face in the final had announced that they were not willing to play against Valeri Karpin’s team and called on FIFA to act.
Shortly before FIFA’s announcement, the Russian Football Federation (RFU) said they saw no legal reason to cancel the play-off matches and added that they could provide “all necessary guarantees” regarding security.
RFU also said they had not received any information from FIFA about canceling or postponing the games.
The president of the French Football Federation, Noel Le Graet, had previously suggested that he not oppose the exclusion of Russia from the World Cup, which will be the first edition of the tournament since Russia hosted the 2018 spectacle.
FIFA’s announcement comes at the end of a week in which a number of sports authorities have announced sanctions against Russia.
After a crisis meeting on Friday, UEFA declared that the Champions League final in May would be moved from St. Petersburg to Paris.
UEFA has also told the Russian national team and clubs from the country to play in neutral arenas in their competitions.
Russia arrived within minutes of qualifying for the World Cup automatically via the group qualifiers. Only a late Croatia goal against them in Zagreb sent Karpin’s team to the playoffs.
(RT.com)
Source: sn.dk