Why is Russia banned from the World Cup while the USA, which attacked Iran, is hosting the tournament? Understand

Vladimir Putin and Gianni Infantino at the World Cup in Russia.
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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 the performance on the field.
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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 the youth categories to the men's and women's teams, in addition to the country's clubs.
At the time, the Russian Football Federation (RFU) was competing in the play-offs for the World Cup in Qatar and would face Poland, who refused to enter 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 competed in friendlies.
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Other countries at war were not banned
Despite the exclusion of the Russian team from all official competitions, the same decision was not taken 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 USA 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.
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The presidents of the United States, Donald Trump, and FIFA, Gianni Infantino, formed a close relationship
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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 was largely isolated by Western countries, which have enormous influence over international organizations, sports markets, sponsors and the media. This context created pressure unprecedented", 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 states.
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 participate. facing the Russians, which put the organization of FIFA tournaments at risk.
"If Russia were in a competition and its opponents refused to play, it 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.
"The war "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 the comparison with other cases raises questions about the consistency of the punishments applied in international sport.
"The United States invaded Iraq in 2003 without a UN mandate and was never banned from competitions. Saudi Arabia also leads military operations in Yemen without suffering sports 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 the conflict: the war takes place in Europe and directly involves a UEFA member country;
Pressure from other teams: countries such as 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 did not achieve. nothing, it just 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 in which children are being killed," Bidnyi told Sky Sports. were excluded by FIFA
This is not the first time that a country has been excluded. Over the last 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 countries. teams and clubs in 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.

Source: G1