FIFA president Gianni Infantino said he is hopeful Russia can be introduced back into the football fold “soon”.
Russia’s national and domestic teams have been suspended from FIFA and UEFA competitions since the country’s illegal, full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Russia and Ukraine held U.S.-mediated peace talks in Saudi Arabia last month, and speaking at the 49th UEFA Congress in Belgrade, Serbia on Thursday, Infantino said he was hoping for Russia’s return to football as this would signify that the war was over and “everything was solved”.
“As talks are going on for peace in Ukraine, I hope that we can soon move to the next page, bring back, as well, Russia in the football landscape because this would mean that everything is solved,” the FIFA president said.
“That’s what we have to cheer for, that’s what we have to pray for — because that is what football is about. It’s not about dividing, it’s about uniting girls, uniting boys, uniting people from wherever they are.”
Russia’s ban from football has remained in place for three years but talk about the country’s return to the sporting landscape has increased in recent months following comments made by U.S. President Donald Trump and Zoran Lakovic, UEFA’s director of national associations. Trump has described Infantino as “my friend for a long time,” and in February Infantino defended his close relationship with the U.S. President.
“It’s important for the world, much more than for football, that we have peace,” Infantino said in March. “If there is a little role that football can play once peace has been achieved, of course we’ll play our role. We look forward (to when) all countries in the world can play football.”
Asked specifically if Trump had spoken to him about Russia returning to the World Cup, Infantino replied: “No. I think there are more important topics to discuss when you discuss peace than about a football tournament.”
In February, the Ukrainian Association of Football (UAF) condemned the prospect of Russia’s return before a peace deal between the two countries is agreed and the war ends.
Lakovic had said, as reported by Russian news outlet Izvestia, he hoped in 2025 “Russian sport will finally return to its former place: the peak of European sport”.
A UAF statement to The Athletic on February 28 read: “Sport cannot exist separately from fundamental values such as peace, respect, and fair play.
“Allowing Russia to compete would normalise aggression, undermine the principles upon which international sports are built and would mean ignoring the suffering of thousands of Ukrainians, including members of the football community, who have lost their lives defending our country.”
In September 2023, UEFA had announced plans to allow Russian Under-17 teams to compete in its competitions, but the proposals were later withdrawn.
(Predrag Milosavljevic/AFP via Getty Images)