Russia's invasion of Ukraine has made Russian athletes "undesirable" internationally, while sporting events are being held on Russian soil and a number of sponsors are canceling agreements related to Russian interests.
In football, Sweden and Poland refused to face Russia in the 2022 World Cup play-offs, while the Champions League final "moved" from St. Petersburg to Paris.
In a last-ditch effort to prevent the Qatar World Cup qualifying process from collapsing, FIFA has announced that it is forcing the Russian national football team to play on neutral ground and with a neutral flag due to the invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops. At the same time, the international confederation announced that the hoisting of the Russian flag and the rejection of the national anthem of the country in all international events are prohibited, while reserving "for further sanctions, including a possible expulsion from the events", as reported.
Another issue that will be on the table, this time for UEFA, is the cooperation with Gazprom, which will be considered next week by the executive committee. This is a contract whose value is estimated at 40 million euros per year.
Finally, Russian basketball and football teams will not be able to use their headquarters in international football and basketball matches.
In motor sports, the organizers of the Formula One World Championship canceled the Sochi Grand Prix, seven months before it took place. Sochi is a symbolic part of Russia's "soft power" in sports, with the host city of the 2014 Winter Olympics hosting the Russian Grand Prix from that year.
The cancellation of the World Junior Swimming Championship, which was to be hosted in Kazan in August, was announced by FINA, due to the invasion of Russian troops in Ukraine. The International Aquatics Federation adds that it will not hold any future events in Russia, "as long as the serious crisis continues", referring to the decisions for the World Swimming Championships in the 25-meter pool, which is also assigned to Kazan and is scheduled for December.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has been ousted as honorary president of the International Judo Federation (IJF), as announced on Sunday, February 27, due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. was to be held in Kazan, Russia (May 25-2022).
The International Olympic Committee, which is usually reluctant to comment on geopolitical issues, has urged international sports federations to cancel or postpone any event scheduled in Russia or Belarus. He also calls for the flags of these two countries not to be raised and for their national anthems not to be heard. In this context, the International Ski Federation (FIS) announced the cancellation of all its races in Russia until the end of the season "in the interest of the safety of all participants", as stated in the relevant announcement. At the same time, the International Biathlon Federation (IBU) banned the rejection of national anthems and the flags of Russia and Belarus during the World Cup. "The Ukrainian flag will be raised during events in honor of the Ukrainian team," IBU officials added.
Also, the four major boxing players (IBF, WBC, WBA and WBO), announced on Saturday, February 26 that no championships will be held in Russia. "At a time when people are calling for a ceasefire, our organizations have decided not to allow tournaments in Russia. "While this war has put an end to boxing in Ukraine, our organizations will not allow fights in Russia until the situation is further assessed," the joint statement said.
Finally, the International Olympic Academy (IOC) unites its voice with that of the International Olympic Committee, which unequivocally condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and decided to take down the flags of Russia and Belarus from its facilities in Ancient Olympia. .