Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has blasted FIFA President Gianni Infantino for seeking to bring Russia back into international soccer, calling him a “moral degenerate,” he said in a post on X.
Sybiha reminded Infantino that 679 Ukrainian girls and boys will never be able to play soccer again because Russia killed them.
“And it keeps killing more while moral degenerates suggest lifting bans, despite Russia’s failure to end its war,” he said.
The minister added that future generations would view such intentions as a disgrace, drawing a parallel to the 1936 Olympics held in Nazi Germany.
In an interview with Sky News, Infantino, who has led FIFA since 2016, urged that Russia be brought back into elite sport.
The FIFA chief said he believes it is both possible and necessary to restore Russia’s participation at least at youth level, arguing that restrictions only deepen mutual hostility.
Asked whether he supports lifting sanctions on Russia, Infantino said: “Oh, absolutely. We have to do it. Yes, at least at youth level. This ban has achieved nothing. I am against bans, I am also against boycotts. I think they achieve nothing; they only foster the increase of hatred.”
On February 28, 2022, the International Olympic Committee recommended that international sports federations bar Russian and Belarusian athletes following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. That same day, FIFA and UEFA excluded Russia’s national teams and all Russian clubs from their competitions, including qualifiers and club tournaments.
Russia challenged the decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne. The appeal was heard in 2022 and rejected, leaving FIFA and UEFA sanctions in place without temporary exemptions or easing.
Separately, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a decree enforcing a National Security and Defense Council decision to impose sanctions on several Russian athletes who support Moscow’s aggression against Ukraine.
Those newly targeted include a Russian boxer and fighter who has publicly backed the invasion and endorsed the actions of Russian forces, the Russian Paralympic Committee and its president, and the Russian Esports Federation and its president.
