International Olympic Committee president Kirsty Coventry has given her clearest signal yet that Russia could be back for the Los Angeles Games in 2028.
A day after FIFA president Gianni Infantino said he wanted to bring Russia back into international football, Coventry used her opening speech at the 145th IOC Congress in Milan to argue that all athletes should be able to participate in sport – regardless of the behavior of their government.
Her comments are likely to spark tensions with Ukraine after Sports Minister Matvii Bidnyi branded Infantino “irresponsible” and “infantile” for trying to draw a line between sport and politics before the IOC president ventured into the same territory.
Although he did not refer to Russia directly, Coventry said: “Throughout the campaign and in many of our conversations since, I have heard the same message from many of you. Focus on our core. We are a sporting organization. We understand politics and we know we do not operate in a vacuum. But our game is sport. That means we must keep sport on a neutral ground. A place where every athlete can compete freely, without being held back by the politics or divisions of their governments.”
“In an increasingly divided world, this principle is more important than ever. It ensures that the Olympic Games can continue to be a place of inspiration where the world’s athletes can come together and showcase the best of our humanity.”
The general view in Milan was that Coventry was referring to Russia’s exclusion since it started the war against Ukraine in 2022. Her comments were also quickly welcomed by Russian IOC member Shamil Tarpischev, who confirmed that relations with the IOC had improved significantly.
“Her speech emphasized that the political component should not play a role,” he told German media. “Because sport is inspiration and the future. So far everything is going smoothly and honorably. But we still have many discussions to have.”
Tarpischev also said he welcomed Infantino’s comments. “I sat next to him at the concert yesterday. He is very positive about all our participation efforts. We are in constant communication.”
Russia has been banned by FIFA and UEFA since the large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The teams are allowed to play friendly matches but are not allowed to participate in competitions such as the men’s or women’s World Cup, the European Championship or junior equivalents. Infantino has consistently expressed hope that they will return, saying in an interview with Sky News on Monday that the ban “has achieved nothing” and needs to be reassessed, at least as far as youth teams are concerned.
However, Bidnyi responded scathingly to Infantino, highlighting the real effects of Russian aggression on footballers and other athletes. “Gianni Infantino’s words sound irresponsible, not to say infantile,” he said. “They are detaching football from the reality of killing children. I would like to remind you that since the beginning of Russia’s large-scale aggression, more than 650 Ukrainian athletes and coaches have been killed by Russians. Among them, 100 were football players.”
Bidnyi then gave examples of young players killed by rocket attacks and shelling before urging football authorities to ban Russia from entering. “War is a crime, not politics,” he said. “It is Russia that is politicizing the sport and using it to justify aggression. I share the position of the Ukrainian Football Association, which also warns against Russia’s return to international competitions.”
“As long as the Russians continue to kill Ukrainians and politicize sports, their flag and national symbols have no place among people who respect values such as justice, integrity and fair play.”
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha went further in condemning Infantino, linking his comments to a past Olympic scandal. “679 Ukrainian girls and boys will never be able to play football – Russia killed them,” he posted on
In December, the IOC advised the sport’s governing bodies to allow Russian youth athletes to compete again in international events, under their own flag and anthem. Shortly afterwards, FIFA announced plans for a new under-15s festival, open to all 211 member associations, to take place this year for boys and in 2027 for girls.
There will be thirteen Russian athletes competing as neutral athletes in Milano Cortina, and seven from Belarus. That’s a fraction of the 200 Russians who competed in Beijing four years ago and won 32 medals under the banner of the “Russian Olympic Committee,” imposed after the state-sponsored doping scandal.
In football, Russian under-16 and under-15 teams have regularly participated in ‘development tournaments’ under the UEFA name since the ban, which are also open to host countries from outside Europe. Opponents in these tournaments included Serbia, Kazakhstan, China, Ghana and Belarus.
Russian national teams have played few matches in Europe since February 2022, apart from matches in their close ally Belarus. There have been exceptions in the past year: the senior women played a friendly match in Serbia last July and two matches in North Macedonia three months later. Mid-season practice matches during club training camps in Turkey are becoming more common. German club Berliner AK caused controversy when the under-19s faced Spartak Moscow, and Rot-Weiss Wittlich played against Dynamo Moscow’s second team last week.
A full return to football seems highly unlikely as long as there is no end to the war in sight. The opposition within Europe, which effectively led to the ban when opponents refused to play Russia in the 2022 World Cup play-offs, remains strong and any vote by the FIFA Council or UEFA would almost certainly fail.
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