Matvii Bidnyi, Ukraine’s Minister for Youth and Sports, has described FIFA president Gianni Infantino as ‘infantile’ and ‘irresponsible’ after he said the world football governing body will look into lifting the ongoing football ban on Russia over the years-long war on her neighbour.
This followed an interview by Sky News on Monday in which Mr Infantino confirmed that FIFA was looking into ending the football ban on Russia after the country was suspended by the body and UEFA from international tournaments immediately after the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
“We have to (end the ban), because this ban has not achieved anything, it has just created more frustration and hatred,” stated Mr Infantino. “Having girls and boys from Russia being able to play football games in other parts of Europe would help.”
He added, “We should actually never ban any country from playing football because of the acts of their political leaders. Somebody needs to keep the ties open.”
The comments of Mr Infantino, who became the organisation’s president in 2016, apparently angered Mr Bidnyi, who took to social media to lambast the FIFA president.
He allegd that Russia killed over 650 Ukrainian athletes and coaches, including more than 100 footballers since the war started.
“Gianni Infantino’s words sound irresponsible — not to say infantile,” the minister said. They detach football from the reality in which children are being killed. Let me remind you that since the start of Russia’s full-scale aggression, more than 650 Ukrainian athletes and coaches have been killed by Russians. Among them were more than one hundred footballers.
“One example is Illia Perezhogin, a 10th-grade student at a Mariupol school, who was simply playing football at his school stadium when a Russian missile struck. Former futsal player Viktoriia Kotliarova was killed together with her mother during the shelling of Kyiv on December 29, 2023. She was a Kyiv Student Futsal Cup champion and a winner of the Dynamo Student League tournament.”
Speaking further, Mr Bidnyi warned against politicising the war in Ukraine, adding the Ukrainian football federation fiercely opposed any attempt by FIFA to reinstate Russia back into the international football when Ukrainians were still being killed by Moscow.
He stated, “War is a crime, not politics. It is Russia that politicises sport and uses it to justify aggression. I share the position of the Ukrainian Association of Football, which also warns against Russia’s return to international competitions.
“As long as Russians continue killing Ukrainians and politicising sport, their flag and national symbols have no place among people who respect values such as justice, integrity, and fair play.”
