Poland will not play their 2022 World Cup play-off with Russia in Moscow on March 24 due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine the president of the Polish football federation said on Saturday.
The conflict entered the third day on Saturday since Russian leader Vladimir Putin unleashed a full-scale invasion that has killed dozens of people, forced more than 50,000 to flee Ukraine in just 48 hours, and sparked fears of a wider conflict in Europe.
He said he would work with the Swedish and Czech federations — the winners of their match would have to play in Russia (on March 29) if the latter beat Poland — to present a unified position to Fifa.
The three federations issued a joint statement on Thursday demanding Fifa move the respective play-offs from Russia.
“Everything which is beautiful in sports is against what war brings,” he said.
“For all people who value freedom and peace, this is a time of solidarity with the victims of the military aggression in Ukraine.
European football’s governing body UEFA punished Russia on Friday by stripping Saint Petersburg of hosting European club football’s showpiece event the Champions League final on May 28 and awarded it to Paris.
