Vladimir Putin and Gianni Infantino at the World Cup in Russia. Disclosure/Kremilin The 2026 World Cup marks the debut of the new format with 48 teams, allowing smaller teams to participate. However, some teams were still left out, such as Russia. The reason, however, is not performance on the field. 📱Bookmark g1 on Google and follow the main news of the day Host of the 2018 World Cup, Russia has not participated in FIFA international competitions since February 2022, when it began the large-scale invasion of Ukraine, a war that continues to this day. The decision, taken together with UEFA (Union of European Football Associations), involves all Russian teams, from youth teams to men's and women's teams, in addition to the country's clubs. At the time, the Russian Football Federation (RFU) was playing in the play-offs for the World Cup in Qatar and would face Poland, who refused to take the field under any circumstances. After the punishment applied by FIFA, the Polish team was declared the winner of the match. Since then, the Russian team has only played friendly matches. Now on g1 Other countries at war were not banned Despite the exclusion of the Russian team from all official competitions, the same decision was not made for other countries that are also at war. As is the case with the United States itself, one of the hosts of this year's tournament. The US has been in conflict with Iran since February this year and also participates, directly or indirectly, in operations and conflicts in the Middle East, such as in Yemen and Syria. Iran, in turn, is also part of the regional conflict and will normally compete in the 2026 World Cup. SEE ALSO: Ukraine launches hundreds of drones against Russia at the closing of economic forum US President Donald Trump and FIFA President Gianni Infantino have formed a close relationship EPA For Rodrigo Amaral, professor of International Relations at PUC-SP, the difference is less in the existence of a war and more in the political context that surrounded Russia's invasion of Ukraine. According to the expert, the exclusion of the Russians occurred in a scenario of strong international pressure led by Western countries. "Russia has been largely isolated by Western countries, which have enormous influence over international organizations, sports markets, sponsors and the media. This context has created unprecedented pressure," he says. For Amaral, FIFA's decision reveals an "extremely partial" criterion in the application of sporting sanctions. "The problem is not Russia's punishment itself, but the absence of universal criteria applied to all cases," he says. Vitélio Brustolin, professor of International Relations at Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF) and researcher at Harvard, agrees that there are differences in treatment between conflicts, but states that Russia's suspension also had practical reasons linked to the functioning of the competitions. According to him, shortly after the invasion of Ukraine, teams such as Poland, Sweden and the Czech Republic announced that they would refuse to face the Russians, which put the organization of FIFA tournaments at risk. "If Russia were in a competition and their opponents refused to play, they could advance for reasons that had nothing to do with sporting merit. This would generate uncertainty capable of destabilizing the entire competition," he states. Furthermore, for Brustolin, the fact that the attack was against a European country and a member of UEFA also increased the pressure on sporting entities. "Russia's war against Ukraine is seen by many European countries as a direct threat to the security of the continent. This generated a mobilization much greater than that seen in other conflicts", he says. The Harvard researcher also says that there is a clear difference between the US case and the Russian case: the legal nature of the invasion. "The Russian invasion is a war of territorial conquest and attempted submission. When Putin says that Ukraine cannot have its own army, that the country's government must be appointed by him and that Kiev cannot join NATO, what he wants, in practice, is to limit sovereignty", The professor recognizes, however, that comparison with other cases raises questions about the consistency of punishments applied in international sport. "The United States invaded Iraq in 2003 without a UN mandate and has never been banned from competitions. Saudi Arabia also leads military operations in Yemen without suffering sporting sanctions. There is a legitimate discussion about double standards", he states. In other words, for the researcher, the difference in treatment is the result of the following combinations: Location of conflict: the war takes place in Europe and directly involves a UEFA member country; Pressure from other teams: countries like Poland, Sweden and the Czech Republic refused to face Russia; Political weight of those involved: Russia is seen by European countries as a strategic adversary, while other countries at war are allies of the West; Influence of federations, sponsors and sports markets: the pressure on FIFA was much greater in the Russian case; Impact on competitions: the refusal of teams to play against Russia could compromise the organization of tournaments and the sporting classification criteria. In March of this year, however, FIFA president Gianni Infantino defended Russia's return to international competitions. According to him, the suspension applied to the country did not produce the expected effects. “This ban has achieved nothing, it has only created more frustration and hatred,” Infantino told Sky Sports. On the other hand, Ukrainian Sports Minister Matvii Bidnyi said that Infantino's comments were “irresponsible” and “childish”. “They separate football from the reality that children are being killed,” Bidnyi told Sky Sports. According to the UN, more than 15 thousand people have died in these four years of war. Other countries have already been excluded by FIFA This is not the first time that a country has been excluded. Over the past few decades, FIFA and other sporting entities have suspended countries involved in armed conflicts or accused of serious human rights violations. In 1992, during the war that accompanied the dissolution of Yugoslavia, the UN Security Council approved a series of sanctions against the then Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), which led to the exclusion of national teams and clubs from international competitions. Another case was that of South Africa during the apartheid regime, a system of racial segregation that existed in the country between 1948 and 1994. Amid international pressure against the discriminatory policies of the South African government, the country spent decades away from various sporting competitions, including tournaments organized by FIFA.