UEFA admits Russian youth teams to international tournaments

UEFA has announced the return of Russian youth national teams to international tournaments. This is stated in a statement by the UEFA press service.

UEFA said they were the first sports body to respond to the war in Ukraine and took decisive action in February 2022 by suspending all Russian teams from their competitions, cancelling events scheduled in Russian Federation such as the UEFA Champions League final in St Petersburg and the UEFA Super Cup in Kazan and terminating their sponsorship contract with Gazprom.

However, UEFA also recognises that children should not be punished for actions for which adults are solely responsible and firmly believes that football should never stop sending messages of peace and hope. It is particularly unfortunate that a generation of minors are being denied the right to compete in international football due to the ongoing conflict," the release said.

According to the press release, "For these reasons, the UEFA executive committee has decided that Russian teams of underage players will be allowed to compete again during this season. The executive committee has therefore asked the UEFA administration to propose a technical solution that would allow the reinstatement of the Russian under-17 national teams (both girls and boys), even if the draw has already been made. All matches of Russian teams are played without the national flag and anthem."

The UEFA executive committee again condemned Russia's illegal war and confirmed that the disqualification of all other Russian teams (clubs and national teams) will remain in force until the conflict in Ukraine is over.

UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin said, " UEFA 's continued suspension of Russian adult teams reflects its commitment to speak out against violence and aggression. UEFA is determined to maintain this stance until the war is over and peace is restored. But by banning children from our competitions, we are not only failing to recognise and support the fundamental right to their holistic development, we are directly discriminating against them. By providing opportunities to play and compete with their peers from across Europe, we are investing in what we hope will be a brighter and more capable future generation and a better future."