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With Poland, Sweden and the Czech Republic refusing to play their World Cup qualifiers against Russia and Belarus, football has used its clout to express its dismay with the invasion. Sport is finally pulling its weight in international affairs, and proving to live up to the cliche of being a pathfinder for the youth. That’s a lone sliver of hope in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Football, more through its players than its feet-dragging administrators, has gone ahead and moved the summer’s biggest club draw — the Champions League final — out of Russia. Russia has been hit by economic sanctions, and freezing of its financial assets. But nothing visibly isolates a football-mad nation such as Russia like the refusal to engage with it on a football field. With Poland, Sweden and the Czech Republic refusing to play their World Cup qualifiers against Russia and Belarus, football has used its clout to express its dismay with the invasion.
The invasion has brought the spotlight on Russian oligarchs and their ownership of clubs, notably Chelsea, which will serve as another moral and monetary leverage as the rest of the world attempts to stop Russia. Elsewhere footballers have donned ‘No War’ jerseys, and the World Judo Federation has removed Vladimir Putin from his top post in the sport. Sport upon sport — from gymnastics to badminton — have issued strong condemnations, revoking of hosting rights to Russian cities and ordered non-display of Russian flags wherever their athletes participate.
The most poignant opposition to the war has come from Russian big names on the international circuit. While Andrey Rublev scribbled ‘No War’ on camera after winning at Dubai, a host of Russian chess GMs — Ian Nepomniachtchi, Peter Svidler and Alexandra Kosteniuk — have ventured to take a stand against war, calling it a dark day. FIDE cancelled its Olympiad in Russia and pro-war GM and legislator, Anatoly Karpov, was put on an EU list of sanctions freezing his assets on EU territory as well as blocking travel. Chess moves have come to life, and Russia, the grand behemoth of that sport, is expected to take note.
This editorial first appeared in the print edition on March 1, 2022 under the title ‘Checkmate Russia’.
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