Ukraine Scotland Game Postponed, Poland to Recieve Bye
FIFA announced Tuesday that they will be granting the Ukrainian Association of Football’s request to postpone their World Cup qualifier against Scotland.
The game was originally scheduled for later this month, but the association filed their request following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, citing security concerns and a lack of player availability.
The war has had a dramatic impact on the county thus far, disrupting civilian life around the country as millions flee to seek refuge outside of it’s borders, and many others have taken to fighting on behalf of Ukraine’s defense. Virtually all professional sports competitions in Ukraine have come to a halt, including the Premier League, which has announced a 30-day minimum pause in Ukrainian league games.
The World Cup’s qualifier is now set to take place in June, a decision that was made following the consultation/communication with UEFA and all four of the participating countries in the European Playoff’s Path A.
FIFA stated, “it was unanimously agreed in the spirit of solidarity to accept the request.”
The announcement also included a recognition that the postponement will subsequently postpone the following match, which is to be played by the winners of Scotland vs. Ukraine and Whales vs. Australia.
Scotland initially shared its support of the FIFA match upon Ukraine’s request, and voiced approval of FIFA’s decision following the official postponement.
“The importance and significance of football is greatly diminished in a time of war,” Scottish FA chief executive Ian Maxwell said Tuesday. “Our thoughts are with those Ukrainian civilians affected by the conflict.”
Scotland is in talks with UEFA regarding the rearrangement of their Nations League matches, where they were scheduled to play Armenia and Ukraine.
Austria and Wales will still play their qualifier match on March 24. FIFA also scheduled Scotland to play the loser of that match in a friendly before they take to the field to play Ukraine in their June qualifier.
Additionally, in following their decision to bar Russia from competing in the World Cup or its qualifying matches, FIFA has announced Poland will advance to the final round of their qualifier. Russia and Poland had initially been scheduled to face off this month, but in light of current events, Poland will recieve a bye.
Russia has begun an appeal in hopes to overturn the decision, which will be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. A date for the verdict has not been set as of Tuesday, athough the Court said it hoped to reach a decision within a few days.
The Swedish Football Association also voiced opposition to the bye, despite sharing public support for Russia’s ineligibility. The Swedes’ Association general secretary Hakan Sjoestrand said he had wanted the positions of all the competing teams to equal going into the qualifying rounds.
All eligible teams will receive more information on their potential future schedules April 1, when the the World Cup draw is conducted in Doha, Qatar.