The war on Ukraine has caused worldwide tension across the globe. Ukraine has seen the support from several countries, while Russia faces extreme financial difficulties due to the war. Not only has the war affected the political world, but it has also played a factor in the world of football.
Because of the martial law placed in Ukraine on February 24th by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian Premier League has been suspended indefinitely. Dynano Kiev was leading by two points from rivals Shakhtar Donetsk.
The Russia men’s national team was scheduled to play in the World Cup qualifiers against Poland and the Czech Republic in late March, however both countries had a plan to boycott the game if it would have been held. This led to FIFA and UEFA to make the decision to suspend both the men and women Russian teams indefinitely.
This means that Russia may not be able to play in the World Cup in Qatar, the women’s national team will not be able to play in the European Championship, and Spartak Moscow will be kicked out of the Europa League.
Along with this decision, the Champions League Final will be moved from St. Petersburg Russia to Paris in May. FIFA is also allowing players and coaches in Ukraine and Russia to suspend its current contracts and sign for new teams to escape conflict in those countries.
Manchester City defender Oleksandr Zinchenko from Ukraine opened about the current situation and the support he has been receiving from the football community.
According to an interview on BBC, Zinchenko said he would get phone calls and videos from his wife of what is going on and he said he has cried several times thinking about it. He has been overwhelmed by the support he has been receiving by his teammates, fans and from people from all over the world who are supporting Ukraine.
He has also said that he is disappointed over the lack of Russian players who have not spoken up about the situation. Russian striker Artem Dzyuba from Zenit had fired back over his comments, saying he is proud to be Russian and attacking the Ukrainian players who play in England by saying “You sit in your mansions and do nothing”.
Dzyuba said that it is also unfair to punish Russian athlete’s over political conflict. The Russian Football Union are even trying to appeal FIFA’s decision and they are requesting a total suspension on the Europa League and World Cup.
Many footballers have expressed their support to Ukraine and many teams are condemning the war. They have also help support the many Ukranian players who are still with their teams during tough conflicts in their home country.
The attack on Ukraine has left many countries cutting ties with businesses in Russia. In football, Bundesliga’s F.C Schalke 04 has removed their Russian energy sponsor Gazprom from their team jerseys. Not only have they been its sponsor since 2007, but it has also been one on UEFA’s main sponsors since 2012.
It has also greatly affected Chelsea F.C, as Russian current owner Roman Abramovich was in the process of selling the team but had his assets frozen as he is sanctioned by the U.K Government for his alleged involvement with Russian President Vladimir Putin. This means that Chelsea is restricted from the transfer window, ticket sales are prohibited, and the team is not able to sign new players to the team.
ESPN later reported in the week that the Premiere League have disqualified Abramovich as the director for Chelsea. Though the team can still play in fixtures and staff will still get paid, they will be given limited about of money to travel to games and will have to reply on just cash reserves.
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