Transfer applied to FIFA
Ukraine doesn’t want to play a World Cup playoff right now
3/4/2022 6:53 am
The Ukrainian national football team is facing the playoffs on the way to the World Cup in Qatar. But the outbreak of war at home makes the games a minor matter. The association prefers to start later. FIFA is now looking for an appropriate solution.
Ukraine wants to postpone the World Cup playoff game against Scotland at the end of March because of the invasion of Russia. As the world association FIFA announced in response to a request from dpa, the Ukrainian association has submitted a corresponding application. FIFA is in regular contact with the European Football Union and the Scottish Association to find an appropriate solution.
Ukraine are scheduled to play Scotland in Glasgow on March 24. The winner then meets Austria or Wales to earn a spot at the World Cup in Qatar later this year. The soccer championship in Ukraine has been suspended since Russia invaded the country a week ago.
On Wednesday, Ukraine captain Andriy Yarmolenko urged his Russian colleagues to take a stand against the war: “I have a question for the Russian internationals: guys, why are you sitting there like idiots and not saying anything? In my country they kill People, women, mothers, our children. But you don’t say anything, you don’t comment.”
“It’s time to act”
Russia has been excluded from all competitions because of the military invasion and will therefore not take part in the World Cup playoffs. The 2018 World Cup hosts should also have played against Poland on March 24. However, the possible opponents of the Russians on the way to Qatar had already positioned themselves before the World Cup exclusion with clear words: “Enough of the words, it’s time to act,” said Poland’s association president Cezary Kulesza. “Due to Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, Poland doesn’t plan to play against the Russian team. It’s the only right decision.”
Sweden and the Czech Republic also announced a boycott of the possible game against the Russians. Initially, FIFA had advocated playing games in which Russia would have had home advantage on neutral ground. The other associations had also rejected this option.
UEFA and FIFA reacted on Monday: “Following the first decisions of the FIFA Council and the UEFA Executive Committee, which provided for additional measures, FIFA and UEFA jointly decided today that all Russian teams are banned from participating in FIFA and UEFA competitions will be excluded. This applies to both national teams and club teams,” said both FIFA and UEFA in a statement, expressing the full solidarity of football to the “affected people in Ukraine”. The associations avoided the word “war” in the brief statement.