The Effect of the Ukrainian Conflict on Soccer

All that has been reported on every single news source as of late February was the decision made by Russia to invade the country of Ukraine. The conflict has impacted the entire world, regardless if one wants to stay neutral, as a result of immense pressure by organizations such as the UN (United Nations) and NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization). Unbeknownst to most people the invasion has not been solely limited to just the political aspect, but has shifted over to the world of sports, specifically that of soccer as it is the most popular game around the entire globe. Certain teams have been greatly impacted by the events, precisely those who have some form of connection with the country of Russia.

The first action which unfortunately had to take place was the postponement of the Ukrainian Premier League season. Though not the best or most popular league in the world, the league is ranked as the 12th, which is impressive considering that there are 210 men’s leagues recognized by FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association). Several teams have seen success in European Tournaments that derive from this association, specifically Shakhtar Donetsk who participated in the UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) Champions League this season before being knocked out during the group stages. This is the largest European Soccer tournament. On the other hand, the Russian League was able to continue as it is solely based in Russia and there is no federation which is able to place restrictions on it, other than their own. In an attempt to combat the influence of the country however, UEFA took actions against one Russian team that was participating in the second largest European Soccer Tournament, the Europa League. The team in question, Spartak Moscow, qualified for the Round of 16 and was selected to play against RB Leipzig from Germany. On the 28th of February a decision was made by UEFA to remove Spartak Moscow from the competition, thus advancing RB Leipzig to the next round.

The popular video games, FIFA, named after the soccer federation also took their own actions against the Russian government, even though they do not have as much power as the typical associations. In September of 2021 EA SPORTS released their game titled “FIFA 22” which saw the 29th game of the franchise released. This game allows the player to play as an official soccer team or create their own with players from different clubs all around the world and face other players or “bots.” After the news broke out about the invasion, EA Sports decided to take matters into their own hands by removing all Russian players from the game, as well as all teams from the country. Confusingly, this included a player who had died in 1990, before the USSR dissolved, and placed into the game despite already being retired for such a long period of time.

The final effect that the invasion has had on soccer is how it has affected one of the most popular teams in the world, Chelsea Football Club. Chelsea was owned by Roman Abramovich, a Russian oligarch and the 113th richest person in the world. With his net worth of $14.5 billion dollars it was no trouble for him in purchasing the team for about $200 million dollars in 2003. Initially after the news regarding the event broke out, the owner of the team released a statement which said he was relinquishing “stewardship and care” of the club to their charitable foundation. Roughly two weeks later, a decision was made by the British government which essentially sanctioned him as an individual and the team, thus forcing him to completely sell the club after his nineteen year reign. The team is currently searching for a new buyer, but in the meantime the team has been faced with several restrictions. During the time period between finding the new buyer, they are unable to renew any contracts meaning those that expire in June will cause the player to automatically become a free agent and the club itself to not receive any payment in return. Furthermore, fans are not allowed at the games themselves and the team is unable to take private jets to their games and instead are forced to ride a bus. Even though the country is small when compared to the United States, this is one of the most popular teams in the world so it shows how bad the current situation is.