Following a ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which orders the reinstatement of Russian teams in IIHF competitions, at least six European federations have announced they will not play against Russia. The International Ice Hockey Federation has not yet announced details of Russia’s return.
What the CAS ruled
According to CBC, CAS overturned IIHF decisions that excluded Russia from events in the 2026/27 season, including the men’s and women’s world championships. The court found that the IIHF’s security concerns were not sufficiently documented. According to Yahoo Sports, the ruling was unanimous, and the return of Russians is set to begin at the World Junior Championship in Canada.
Russia and Belarus have been excluded from IIHF competitions since February 28, 2022, following the invasion of Ukraine. The IIHF said it respects the authority of CAS and will comply with the ruling, but that the decision „does not remove” the concerns on which its assessments were based. „Practical solutions” are to be determined after an analysis of the ruling. The IIHF Board met on Monday and Tuesday, and no decision had been announced at the time of publication.
Who is refusing to play Russia
According to Globe and Mail, the federations of Sweden, Finland, the Czech Republic and Latvia have announced that their teams will not play against Russia. Denmark, which is not in the junior championship field, announced it will not play Russia at the men’s world championship. Norway declared the same regarding the 2027 championship in Germany.
- Sweden: the board decided it will not play Russia in any category (senior, junior, women, U18). The Swedes stress that this is not a boycott of the whole tournament, only of matches against Russia.
- Finland: according to its president, Heikki Hietanen, it is building a „common front” of countries. It added that no player or official will be forced to take part in a tournament with Russia or Belarus.
- Denmark: it informed the IIHF of the decision, federation president Henrik Bach Nielsen told the Ritzau agency.
According to TSN, the secretary general of the Norwegian federation, Petter Salsten, told AP that Norway could be removed from the World Junior Championship to make room for Russia. The Finnish city of Turku stated that it will not co-host next year’s World Juniors if Russia takes part.
Positions of Canada and Ukraine
Hockey Canada expressed disappointment with the ruling and is holding talks with the IIHF and other federations. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha thanked the countries that refused to play Russia and called on others, including co-host Canada, to follow their example and deny visas to Russians.
What it means
For fans in Poland, two issues are key: the schedules of the junior and senior world championships and the possible draw of groups involving Russia. Poland was not among the countries that announced a boycott. If the IIHF does not find a solution, tournaments may be restructured or held without some top teams. For now, it is unclear whether any federation will face sanctions for refusing to play.
