The prime minister is right to describe Russia’s absurd, tasteless and brazen bid to host the European football championships in 2028 as “beyond satire.” The suggestion, submitted at the last minute when it seemed Britain and Ireland’s bid would be unopposed, smacks of Kremlin mischief-making, designed to anger a key ally of Ukraine and to claim victimhood when Russia is thrown out of Uefa, as it surely must be soon. The idea of Russia hosting any international sporting event while its missiles rain down on civilians is repugnant.
With hindsight —but not that much given the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the invasion of Georgia in 2008 — Russia should never have been considered a fit host for the Winter Olympics in 2014, let alone the World Cup in 2018. Presiding over those two global gatherings was a propaganda coup for Vladimir Putin, just as welcoming the world to Berlin for the summer games in 1936, which benefited Adolf Hitler’s regime, was an early example of sportwashing. Allowing Russia anywhere near the privileges and respectability conferred by organising future international sport is unthinkable, and will remain so for some time to come.
The bulk of Russian territory falls within the continent of Asia rather than Europe. Russia’s slide into corruption, autocracy, repression and aggression is sadly endorsed and replicated by some nations located in Asia. Most of the key supporters of Russia’s egregiously revanchist foreign policy are in Asia.
Obviously Uefa needs to expel Russia from its ranks forthwith, leaving the Russian Football Union to then apply for membership of the Asian Football Confederation. There it would compete against like-minded nations such as Iran and North Korea. The one problem, of course, would be deciding which side you most want to lose.