Ukraine crisis: FIFA bar Russia from competing with name, national flag

FIFA said on Sunday that Russia could continue to play matches albeit on neutral venues and only under the name ‘Football Union of Russia’ but warned the country could be excluded from competitions if the situation in Ukraine does not improve.

The announcements, which FIFA called “immediate first measures” were, however, swiftly criticised as insufficient by the head of the Polish Football Association.

Poland has said it will not play against Russia in their scheduled World Cup qualifying playoff on March 24 in protest at the invasion of neighbouring Ukraine.

FIFA, who condemned the “use of force by Russia in its invasion of Ukraine” said that no international soccer matches will be played in Russia and the country’s flag and anthem will be banned from any of their matches abroad.

The global governing body said the national team would not compete as Russia but as the Football Union of Russia (RFU) and any ‘home’ games would be held with no fans on “neutral territory”.

But Polish Football Association chief Cezary Kulesza criticised the FIFA stance and called for Russia to be expelled from the World Cup.

“Today’s FIFA decision is totally unacceptable. We are not interested in participating in this game of appearances. Our stance remains intact: Polish National Team will not play with Russia, no matter what the name of the team is,” he wrote on twitter.

“If FIFA’s Human Rights Policy is more than just words on paper, now is the time to put it into effect, excluding the Russian Football Association from qualifying for the Qatar World Cup in 2022,” he added in a statement.

Additional reports from Reuters