UEFA still finances Russian clubs, but not Ukrainian ones
8 August 15:43
The European Football Union (UEFA) has paid Russian football clubs more than 10.8 million euros in “solidarity” payments after they were excluded from European tournaments due to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. This is reported by "Komersant Ukrainian" with reference to The Guardian.
Russian clubs and the Russian national team have been banned from international competitions since February 2022. Despite this, UEFA transferred 3.3 million euros to the Russian Football Association in 2022-23, 3.4 million in 2023-24, and 4.2 million in 2024-25. These funds were intended to support clubs that did not qualify for European competitions due to poor results in national championships.
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Ukrainian clubs have not been paid
At the same time, five Ukrainian clubs – Chornomorets and Real Pharma from Odesa, Metalurh from Zaporizhzhia, Phoenix Mariupol from the occupied city, and FC Metalist 1925 from Kharkiv – did not receive similar payments for 2023-24 and 2024-25. The reason, according to UEFA, is that they are located in the “zone of military operations,” although no official explanation or legal justification has been provided.
In a letter to UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin, Ukrainian clubs expressed outrage over the “emergency situation” with payments. They emphasized that the concept of a “military operations zone” is unclear and does not correspond to reality, as the whole of Ukraine is suffering from Russian aggression, not just certain regions.
Mariupol and part of Zaporizhzhia region are under Russian occupation, but Odesa and Kharkiv are not. The clubs note that financial support is extremely important, as they cannot cover their expenses from match revenues due to the war.
Many Ukrainian fans and players have gone to the front since the first days of the war, and some of them have been killed. The clubs emphasize that “solidarity” payments could ease their financial burden in these difficult times.
UEFA Russia=love?
UEFA, despite its promises, has not provided official comments on the payments to Russian clubs. This raises new questions about the organization’s stance on Russia, as the Russian football union has not yet been expelled from UEFA.
It is noteworthy that Polina Yumasheva, the former wife of Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, remains a member of UEFA’s Governance and Compliance Committee. Her presence only increases criticism of the organization.
In 2022, UEFA fined the head coach of the Ukrainian national team , Oleksandr Petrakov, for his words about his readiness to take up arms against Russia. This was another example of UEFA’s controversial policy.
In addition, in 2023, UEFA tried to return the Russian youth national team to international competitions, but abandoned this plan after protests from several countries, including England. The Ukrainian Football Association also complained that Russian clubs continue to be awarded rating points, which contradicts the idea of their isolation.
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