Georgia wants Russia excluded from FIFA
Published: 19 August, 2009, 12:51
TAGS: Sport, Scandal, Georgia, Football
Georgia claims it will demand Russia’s exclusion from FIFA if South Ossetian club Spartak Tskhinval will be allowed to play in the country’s First Division.
President of the Football Federation of Georgia Nodar Ahalkatsi said South Ossetia, which is not recognized by the world community, remains a part of Georgia and a team from one country can’t compete in a foreign league.
The official added that the Federation had already started consultations with the world football governing body on the issue.
If excluded, Russian national teams would be ruled out of all FIFA competitions, including the World Cup.
Meanwhile, the South Ossetian authorities say they don’t understand what the fuss is about as they have no plans for Spartak Tskhinval to participate in a Russian league.
Furthermore, South Ossetian Sport Minister, Bakhva Tedeev, sympathised with some of Georgia’s arguments.
”We are a recognized state now and our clubs have no grounds to play in another country’s championship. This is nonsense,” he told RIA-Novosti news agency.
But there are some conflicting examples in European football: FC Monaco plays in the French championship, teams from Wales are allowed to compete in English lower divisions and a club from Andorra is represented in one of the Spanish leagues.
The Russian Professional Football League, responsible for the country’s First and Second Divisions, described Georgian claims as “ridiculous”, stressing they know nothing about Spartak Tskhinval aiming to play in Russia.
Russia recognized the independence of Georgia’s breakaway republics of South Ossetia and Abkhazia following Georgia’s attack on South Ossetia back in August 2008.
19.08.2009, 10:46
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Georgia sounds definitely desperate