President of the Russian Football Union, Alexander Dyukov, commented to "SE" regarding the exclusion of the Russian national team from the draw for the qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup.
— You previously stated that one of the RFU's goals is for the Russian national team to participate in the qualification for the 2026 World Cup. Is there any special mechanism that could allow us to be included?
— When FIFA and UEFA decided to suspend us, we appealed to the CAS. The rationale from the international football organizations was that holding matches and competitions in Russia is allegedly unsafe. The second argument was that the participation of our national teams and clubs could lead to a boycott by other national associations and foreign clubs. This could undermine the integrity of competitions and threaten the holding of tournaments. For the situation to change, FIFA and UEFA must lift the ban on our participation in competitions. We hope this will happen next year.
— So there is no special mechanism?
— First and foremost, a decision must be made to lift the restrictions imposed by FIFA and UEFA.
In February 2022, UEFA and FIFA suspended Russian clubs and national teams from participating in international tournaments.
The qualifying matches for the 2026 World Cup will begin in March 2025 and conclude in November of the same year. Teams will be divided into 12 groups of four national teams each, with the winners of each group earning spots in the World Cup. Four additional spots will be determined later in playoff matches involving 16 teams: 12 national teams that finished second in their groups and the four best teams from the 2024/25 Nations League that did not qualify directly for the World Cup.
The tournament will take place in three countries— the USA, Mexico, and Canada— from June 11 to July 19, 2026. A total of 16 European national teams will be able to qualify.