“Clearly pro-Russian organization.” Palkin criticized FIFA

General Manager of Donetsk football club “Shakhtar” sergei palkin He faithfully criticized FIFA for the actions of the Russian Federation:

“The FIFA World Cup held in Qatar has once again demonstrated the essence of FIFA – an openly pro-Russian organization that does not hesitate to support Russia, even if it tries to do it secretly.

The World Cup has always been a holiday for fans from all over the world. It united people, different peoples and continents, opened new borders and provided a platform for peace. Even if your team does not participate in the world championship, you can still come and enjoy the atmosphere of a football celebration. But not everyone in Qatar had this opportunity.

In October, Qatari authorities stopped allowing Ukrainians to enter their country. Our fans were denied entry and were not allowed to issue the Hayya Kart, a personalized document that allows you to go to World Cup matches. It was necessary to apply, but the decision was not made. The Russians received the card in one day.

FIFA’s attitude towards Ukraine as a whole and the war that Russia has started in our country is also underlined by President Zelensky’s rejection of a video message containing a message of peace to the whole world ahead of the 2022 World Cup final. The decisive match of the World Cup was watched by 1.2 billion people all over the planet, taking away the opportunity to speak in front of such an audience is a moral crime against humanity.

“Make football work for society” or “Make football work for society” is one of the goals of FIFA Vision 2020-2023, which he advertises. But for some reason this is not working in relation to Ukraine and Ukrainians. We see how biased FIFA and its leadership were towards Ukraine during the ten months of the war. Having great resources and influence in the world, they did nothing to influence the aggressor and stop the war.

Is football out of politics? But war is not politics, it is the death of hundreds of thousands of people, it is destroyed houses and destinies. But during the World Cup in Qatar, FIFA never brought the world’s attention to the genocide of Ukrainians.

FIFA brings Ukrainian clubs to the brink of survival, thinking only about the profits of their managers, does not respect Ukrainian fans, prevents them from watching matches and plays with Russia at the first opportunity.

FIFA, whose decisions should be based primarily on values ​​and not on the political and economic interests of individual countries and their representatives, should be transformed from a purely political organization into a more professional organization.

It is worth noting that previously FIFA refused Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s appeal via video before the start of the World Cup final between Argentina and France to be played in Qatar.