A bid by the Russian Football Union (RFU) to join its Asian counterpart will be opposed, according to a report, by the European Football Association (UEFA). At a meeting of the RFU executive committee on Friday, one of the subjects up for discussion is a prospective transition to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
“Despite the current situation, UEFA does not want to lose Russia’s membership in its organization,” Russian outlet Championat reported on Friday, citing a source familiar with the situation.
“UEFA is in favor of a variant in which, after the tension of the geopolitical situation is reduced, Russian football will begin to integrate into European football again.
“For UEFA, the loss of such a country will be a big reputational blow, even under the current situation,” added the report.
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Because of the conflict with Ukraine, Russian teams continue to be barred from all levels of UEFA and FIFA play. Following a suggestion from the International Olympic Committee, the football governing organisations initially issued their sanctions at the end of February (IOC).
Aleksander Ceferin, head of UEFA, has justified the choice but asserted that “football is the loser” in the situation.
The Russian men’s national team was denied the opportunity to advance to the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup and has already been disqualified from the 2024 UEFA European Championship qualification process.
Although Russia has so far been unsuccessful in its arguments against the UEFA and FIFA sanctions at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Switzerland, it has stated that it may still pursue the matter there.
There have been rumours that Russia may leave many European athletic organisations in favour of their Asian equivalents due to the extensive sanctions placed on Russian athletes by international federations, which are perceived in Russia as being driven by Western influences.
The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) offered that Russians and Belarusians might compete at events under its auspices as a chance to get back into competition before the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024 at an IOC session earlier in December in Switzerland.
The plan received “unanimous approval” from those in attendance at the conference, and the IOC indicated it will be looked into.
To avoid leaving important and lucrative UEFA club competitions like the Champions League, certain Russian football authorities have advised against joining the AFC.
Alexey Sorokin, a prominent figure in Russian football administration who oversaw the local organising committee for the 2018 World Cup, claimed this week that although Russia and UEFA have “strong and long-standing” ties, talk of an Asian switch is “justified and inevitable” given the current situation.
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