Russia responds to fresh football blow
Football officials in Russia have said they will continue to fight their corner despite having their appeal against a FIFA and UEFA ban rejected by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Switzerland.
CAS announced on Friday that it had dismissed the claims by the Russian Football Union (RFU) and a quartet of Russian clubs, who had argued that suspensions imposed by FIFA and UEFA were unfair.
The ruling means that Russian national and club teams of all levels and types will continue to be prevented from appearing in FIFA and UEFA competitions.
“The RFU categorically disagrees with the CAS decision and reserves the right to continue protecting its own interests,” read a statement from Russian football bosses shared by Match TV.
“The Union is awaiting the full text of the decision from CAS, after the analysis of which a decision will be taken on further actions.
“Possible options include, among other things, appeal to the Supreme Court of Switzerland, as well as filing claims with CAS related to compensation for financial losses incurred by the RFU as a result of the actions of UEFA and FIFA.”
Explaining its verdict, CAS said it was “unfortunate” that Russian footballers and teams had been affected by a situation beyond their control.
However, it argued that UEFA and FIFA were within their rights to impose bans because of “the need for the secure and orderly conduct of football events for the rest of the world.”
The European and world football governing bodies initially announced the suspension of Russian teams on February 28 after the onset of Moscow’s military operation in Ukraine.
The decision followed a recommendation from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) that Russian teams and athletes should not be invited to competitions wherever possible.
In football terms, the ban has resulted in the Russian men’s team being prevented from attempting to qualify for the FIFA 2022 World Cup in Qatar, while the Russian women’s team were expelled from this summer’s UEFA European Championships in England.
St. Petersburg was also stripped of last season’s UEFA Champions League final, which was moved to Paris instead.
UEFA announced in early May that its ban on Russian teams would extend to the 2022/23 season at the very least.
