Three Countries Demand Location Of World Cup Qualifiers Change

A growing number of countries are expressing their willingness to relocate some matches as the last window of European World Cup qualifying draws closer.

One day after UEFA had announced that the Champions League final would be moved from Saint Petersburg, Paris to the Czech Republic, the three nations – Poland (Sweden) and Sweden (Czech Republic) released a joint statement stating their firm stance against Russia hosting their matchup in Poland on March 24 or their matchup in Sweden or the Czech Republic, respectively.

OŚWIADCZENIE FEDERACJI PIŁKARSKICH POLSKI, SZWECJI I CZECH. Więcej… https://t.co/fkNXQJIseH pic.twitter.com/Tc9o5POp02

— PZPN (@pzpn_pl) February 24, 2022

“It’s a possible scenario … spontaneously around the feelings we have as we wake up this morning are that it is almost unthinkable that we in a few weeks would play a football match in Russia,” SvFF (Sweden) chairman Karl-Erik Nilsson told Reuters Thursday. “As it looks here and now, today, there is absolutely no desire to play a football match in Russia.”

It is encouraging to see more countries not host sporting matches in countries that are engaged in aggressive wars against their neighbor. But why does it take an open conflict for people to realize that Russia should not be allowed to profit from the PR and revenue streams of international sporting events?

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Russia is an aggressive nation rising in global prominence. They are openly hostile to the West. We should therefore not allow them the opportunity of hosting major fixtures in two of most profitable sports tournaments around the globe.

Why didn’t other countries show more courage when demanding that China is held accountable for the countless violations of human rights they committed before the Winter Olympics began? While the Olympics ratings were low, countries continued to participate in the games, despite China providing atrocious conditions for their athletes and treating them as if they were cattle. Joe Biden, despite receiving very little resistance from China, retracted his own diplomatic boycott.

Future events will be more successful if the major event governing boards don’t permit dictatorial countries to host such events. However, if protests are necessary and venues need to be adjusted last minute in order for change to occur that’s a good step.