UEFA Ends Ban On Russian Junior Team, UK Still Refuses To Play Against Russia

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin. (photo: twitter @CeferinAleksan1)

JAKARETA -  England soccer junior teams said they would not play against Russia, at all levels of competition. The statement came about by the English Football Association (FA) on Tuesday, September 26, after the UEFA announced plans to allow the Russian U-17 team back to European competition for the first time since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

After this invasion, what Moscow calls a "special military operation", the European football body decided in February 2022 that all Russian teams - both national and club teams - would be banned from participating in all of their competitions. Even UEFA has also canceled partnerships with Russian energy company Gazprom.

In a statement last Tuesday following a meeting of its Executive Committee in Limassol, Cyprus, the UEFA said it was "knowing that children should not be punished for actions that are fully responsible for adults..."

"For this reason, the UEFA Executive Committee has decided that Russian junior teams will be allowed to return to their competitions this season", UEFA said.

The Executive Committee has asked the UEFA administration to propose a technical solution that will allow the recovery of Russia's U17 teams (both men and women) even when the draw has been held."

UEFA added that matches of the Russian teams will be played outside Russia and will not feature their national flags, national anthems, or national uniforms.

"... by banning children from our competition, we have not only failed to recognize and defend their basic rights to their holistic development, but we are directly discriminating them", said UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin.

The FA said it disagreed with UEFA's decision. "We do not support the position to allow Russia back to the UEFA Age Category Competition, and our position remains that the British team will not play against Russia", a FA spokesman told Reuters.

The men's U-17 European Championship final will be held in Cyprus next year, while the women's tournament will take place in Sweden.

On Tuesday, UEFA also announced Armand Duka as a substitute for former Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) boss Luis Rubiales.

Rubiales resigned from the position of Vice President of the football body after kissing Jenni Hermoso on the lips after Spain's World Cup win last month, which caused the anger of players and fans.

Grief is the head of the Albanian football federation and has been a member of the UEFA Executive Committee since 2019.