Will UEFA impose new sanctions on Russia?
UEFA is at least trying to prevent the Russian bid with a suspension.
At the request of the sports show, UEFA pointed out that the Russian association had not been suspended “at the time” of the suspension of Russian teams. But the UEFA Executive Committee is “Ready to reassess the legal and factual situation and, if necessary, to make further decisions, also in the light of the declaration of interests of the Russian Federation for the organization of the EM”.
Can UEFA still prevent the application?
Russia declared its interest as a full UEFA member in good time. However, the actual process will only start on April 5, 2022 with the official announcement of the applications. The UEFA bid regulations also state: “The participation of a UEFA member association in a bid process ends automatically with the suspension of that association.” The UEFA Executive Committee can issue a suspension if it is found that the statutes have been violated. The UEFA Congress (May 11, 2022 in Vienna) would then have to vote on a continuation or cancellation.
A lawsuit could result. Russia had already appealed to the International Court of Justice (CAS) against the suspension of its teams, but had failed in an application for a temporary suspension of the suspension for the duration of the proceedings.
So far, the position of the German Football Association (DFB) is unclear. A request from the sports show whether the association supported a suspension of Russia and a prevention of the application initially went unanswered. The DFB is a member of UEFA, and Rainer Koch is a representative of the DFB on the UEFA Executive Committee.