Ukraine is being prepared to be excluded from the game – Newspaper Kommersant No. 237 (7438) of 12/21/2022

The International Football Federation (FIFA) and the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) have threatened the Ukrainian Football Association (UAF) with suspension of membership. All because of the allegedly gross interference of the state in the affairs of the football structure. We are talking about the situation that has developed around the head of the UAF, Andrei Pavelko, who has come under investigation for embezzlement of funds, including those coming from FIFA and UEFA. The Ukrainian authorities are trying to replace Mr. Pavelko with Andriy Shevchenko. In response, the first vice-president of the UAF, Oleg Protasov, announced “the intentions of third forces to make a literally raider seizure of power in the Ukrainian House of Football.” Mr. Protasov accused the opponents of his boss of working for Russia.

Immediately, two key international structures of world football – FIFA and UEFA – threatened the Ukrainian Football Association with the suspension of its membership. This was announced by the first vice-president of the UAF Oleg Protasov. The two-time USSR champion on his Facebook page (owned by Meta, recognized as extremist and banned in Russia) published a scan of a letter signed by FIFA and UEFA General Secretaries Fatma Samura and Theodore Theodoridis, respectively. It says that FIFA and UEFA are extremely concerned about reports that members of the UAF executive committee were pressured to agree to an extraordinary (virtual) meeting of the executive committee of the Ukrainian federation.

The letter notes that the rules of FIFA and UEFA provide that the national federations operate without the intervention of third parties.

In case of detection of such membership of the national federation in international structures may be suspended. In the worst case, it can even lead to an exception.

The scandalous situation in the UAF developed after the Ukrainian authorities arrested UAF President Andriy Pavelko (he was later released on bail of 10 million hryvnias – $ 270 thousand that the UAF paid for him), suspected of numerous episodes of embezzlement, including funds, received by the UAF from international football structures (the case in question has been under investigation since 2021.). For the place of Mr. Pavelko claims the owner of the “Golden Ball-2004” ex-forward of Kyiv “Dynamo”, “Milan”, “Chelsea”, former head coach of the Ukrainian national team Andriy Shevchenko. To elect him instead of Andrei Pavelko, it was necessary to convene an extraordinary meeting of the executive committee. However, Oleg Protasov is sure that all this is illegal.

“The facts of unprecedented pressure on members of the UAF executive committee, on the leadership of the association and its regional representatives are now known not only in Ukraine, but also abroad. We are talking about attempts to hold a meeting of the UAF executive committee on the basis of fake protocols and signatures,” said Oleg Protasov. “Being the first vice-president of the UAF, I informed the international football authorities about the intentions of third forces to make a literally raider seizure of power in the Ukrainian House of Football. It is expected that the world football community cannot and will not turn a blind eye to attempts to hold illegal elections to the UAF,” Mr. Protasov said. Recognize that it is impossible to kill the UAF at the request of some of the clerks, either in the office of the president, or somewhere else.

However, Mr. Protasov believes that in the purely internal affairs of Ukrainian football, there was a Russian trace.

He turned to those who supported the convening of an extraordinary meeting of the executive committee with the question: “Are you working for the Russian Federation ?!”

Note that the search for Russian intervention has become commonplace for Oleg Protasov. In November, he withdrew from the membership of the Ukrainian Olympic Committee, indignant at the fact that supposedly pro-Russian functionaries were admitted to its composition. “I am leaving the NOC and I invite all my fellow patriots to do the same,” said Oleg Protasov. He also actively supported the position of his boss Andrei Pavelko, who insisted that FIFA and UEFA should exclude the Russian Football Union from their membership. Recallthat Russia, after the start of events in Ukraine, was suspended from participation in international football tournaments. But the exclusion of the RFU from FIFA and UEFA, despite the insistent demands of the Ukrainian side, is out of the question.

Alexander Petrov