Russia at risk of Champions League hosting over Ukraine issues

The European football committees have been holding numerous discussions over the rising issue of Russia’s continued intervention in Ukraine and whether the country will be fit to host the UEFA Champions League final at St. Petersburg. This was going to be the biggest footballing event in the country since they hosted the 2018 FIFA World Cup in partnership with Ukraine.

The biggest event in European club football is going to be held on 28 May. UEFA has not yet issued any fresh statement regarding the situation and has been saying that they are “constantly and closely monitoring the situation” and currently have no plans in place in order to change the final destination from the decided venue.

But a person who has expertise in this situation said that the Ukraine crisis was discussed by top-level officials at UEFA on Tuesday, including its president, Aleksander Ceferin. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss talks assessing the geopolitical situation. The Champions League has already twice been shifted from its previous venues in the last two years due to the pandemic and it is very much possible that the people responsible for managing the situation might just do it again.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson also said that UEFA shouldn’t take this situation lightly and shift the final from Russia as he warned of “a Russia that is more isolated. A Russia that has pariah status … no chance of holding football tournaments in a Russia that invades sovereign countries.”

 Gazprom, Russia’s state gas company, has also been a sponsor of the Champions League since 2012 which is also the same year in which Ukraine co-hosted the European Championship with Russia. However, the company’s logos were eventually removed from the UEFA-branded “Champions Festival” which was organized on Kyiv’s main street when Ukraine staged the 2018 Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool.