Russia’s new invasion of Ukraine has understandably earned the world’s condemnation. But that’s the easy part. What to do about it, from economic sanctions to outright military intervention, is where things get complicated.
But the decision by FIFA to expel Russia from the 2022 soccer World Cup is a positive step we should all get behind. It’s a way to rebuke Russia for its atrocities meaningfully without risking more war.
FIFA, a nongovernmental international soccer organization, and UEFA, which has authority over soccer tournaments in Europe, announced Monday that they will expel Russian teams from future competitions.”FIFA and UEFA have today decided together that all Russian teams, whether national representative teams or club teams, shall be suspended from participation in both FIFA and UEFA competitions until further notice.”
Critics of this decision offer up two arguments. First, they say that sports shouldn’t get political. Second, they argue that this ban unfairly punishes Russian athletes who have done nothing wrong and have no culpability for the invasion of Ukraine. Russian soccer authorities are leading the charge.
According to them, “It is obviously discriminatory in nature and harms a huge number of athletes, coaches, employees of clubs and national teams, and most importantly, millions of Russian and foreign fans. … We reserve the right to challenge the decision of FIFA and UEFA in accordance with international sports law.”
Don’t get me wrong: I cannot stand woke virtue-signaling in sports. But sports exist in the real world. It’s impossible for things to just go on like normal in international soccer competitions while one competitor is actively invading another and causing the deaths of innocents. Indeed, from Sweden to Poland, many countries said they would refuse to participate in the World Cup if Russia remained involved. Anything short of banning Russia would have led the entire competition, which billions of people watch and which produces billions of dollars in commerce, to collapse in short order. So, too, some qualifying matches were even scheduled to be played in Russia. How could these organizations possibly have asked athletes and teams to go to Moscow right now?
Critics are right that this move punishes Russian athletes who’ve personally done nothing wrong. That’s unfortunate, and I do feel bad for them. But it’s the price of doing business. Russian President Vladimir Putin is an egomaniac who cares deeply about Russia’s global image, and shunning them from international competitions they care about — the World Cup is the most-watched sporting event in Russia — may actually hit home. Certainly, Russian soccer fans will lament what their leader’s rash aggression has wrought.
This is the right move.
Brad Polumbo (@Brad_Polumbo) is a co-founder of Based-Politics.com, a co-host of the BasedPolitics podcast, and a Washington Examiner contributor.
