FIFA's ban on Russia adds new layer to Ukraine conflict

By Martin Rogers
FOX Sports Columnist

The biggest story in the world is now a sports story, too, as well as being a heartbreaking story, a terrifying story and one that brings a level of uncertainty to the immediate state of world affairs not known for decades.

The sports part of it is a long way from being the most important bit, of course, not when lives are being risked — and lost — as Ukraine’s brave fight to defend itself from Russia’s military invasion earns worldwide sympathy.

But it’s not insignificant either.

For nothing is immune when historic global events unfold, especially of the type in which peace is breached, suddenly and shockingly. Sports’ role in the evolving battle became magnified Monday when FIFA, world soccer’s governing body, banished Russia from the 2022 World Cup on account of Vladimir Putin’s widely condemned acts of imperial aggression.

Wars are influenced in ways both direct and implied, with tanks and bombs and bullets and tactics, yes, but also with sanctions aimed at weakening a rival through economic punishment, international admonishment or affecting the conflict’s domestic support.

FIFA’s action was about the latter two. Russia wasn’t guaranteed to qualify for this year’s tournament, to be held in Qatar in November and December, in any case. It needed to win two European qualifying games, the first of which was due to be at home to Poland on March 24. But first Poland announced it would refuse to play, and then both of Russia’s other potential opponents, Sweden and the Czech Republic, did the same.

FIFA, in conjunction with European confederation UEFA, brought clarity to the situation by suspending all Russian national and club teams from their competitions until further notice, a move that is likely to also exclude Russia’s women's squad from the forthcoming European Championships.

Governments can levy trade embargoes. Military alliances, such as NATO, can send arms and troops. FIFA took the strongest course of action open to it and followed the near-universal call of disapproval toward Russia.

Russia is a country that loves sports, soccer especially. The war in Ukraine has already generated vocal unpopularity at home. It would be foolish to think that taking away the national team’s place in a World Cup could be a tipping point, but it is an important part of the overall picture. 

With the sanction handed down, it means that just four years after hosting the World Cup in 2018, Russia will be excluded from the next one. That matters a little more than it might have because of how deeply Putin’s regime has aligned itself with sports.

As daily readers know, this is not a political column — it is a sports one for sports lovers — but sometimes the two things become interlaced, and there is simply no avoiding it.

The last World Cup was an outstanding feast of soccer that will go down as one of the highest-quality tournaments on record, but it was also unabashedly used by Putin to further his agenda.

During the event, in June and July of 2018, he was everywhere. Putin was at the opening ceremony, seated alongside FIFA president Gianni Infantino and Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammad bin Salman. After Russia won its first game, head coach Stanislav Cherchesov interrupted his postgame news conference to take a congratulatory phone call from "our head of state."

As Russia’s team surged through the group stage, Putin used the distraction of patriotic joy to rush through an unpopular bill that unilaterally raised the retirement age for men and women by up to eight years. Around the same time, one of his political allies tried to push through legislation that would have made it illegal to criticize the national team. Yes, really.

By the time Russia defeated Spain on penalties in the round of 16 and the Kremlin leaked that Putin had sent the team an inspirational pregame message, it was clear the 2018 World Cup was dripping with politics, and no one could pretend otherwise.

For most of his life, Putin was no great lover of soccer. His sport of choice was judo, and he was honorary president of the International Judo Federation until his status was suspended by the organization last weekend.

But he saw the political capital of the World Cup and realized that in terms of international sporting gravitas, there is nothing like it, perhaps not even the Olympics.

Taking away Russia’s place in the event's next iteration might not confer more than a small sting, but it was manifestly the right thing to do.

In Ukraine, the rapidly changing situation offers no certainty to predictions of how it all shakes out. Globally, there is fear of a new Cold War, and within the country, the prevalent fear of death and defeat prevails.

Yet there is a defiant resistance to the invasion, a proud wave of nationalism doing all it can to stave off what seemed inevitable when the Russian onslaught began. Sports is involved in that, too.

A collection of Ukrainian fighting men, who earned fame and fortune internationally as champion boxers, have joined the struggle to defend their homeland.

Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, and his brother, Wladimir, who jointly dominated the heavyweight division for a decade, are 50 and 45 but have both vowed to take up arms. So too has current heavyweight title-holder Oleksandr Usyk, who has a multimillion-dollar rematch with Anthony Joshua pending but returned home to line up with the Kyiv Territorial Defense Forces. Former pound-for-pound No. 1 and two-time Olympic champion Vasiliy Lomachenko returned from Greece to join a territorial unit in the Black Sea city of Odessa along with other athletes such as tennis pro Sergiy Stakhovsky.

Their role is important because it shows what the Ukrainian mentality is right now: all in it together, with no concession given for wealth or status or prestige.

Just a fight for the survival of their country, as the world watches their story — and the people of Ukraine live through the midst of it.

Martin Rogers is a columnist for FOX Sports and the author of the FOX Sports Insider Newsletter. You can subscribe to the newsletter here.