Outcasts in the football world: Tajikistan and Pakistan refuse to play Russian team
The national football teams of Tajikistan and Pakistan have refused to play in friendly matches against Russia.
A match against Tajikistan had been set to take place in December, but the federation declined, saying they already had matches booked for those dates.
Pakistan has also cancelled an October game against Russia due to a lack of preparation time. However, the Pakistanis said they would play in December.
When the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, Russian teams were barred from competing in any FIFA or UEFA championships. As a result, the team has had to settle for friendly matches. The Russians have played just three matches in 2024. Their opponents were the national teams of Belarus, Serbia and Vietnam.
UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin has previously expressed an interest in bringing Russia’s youth teams back to UEFA tournaments.
