The governing body of football in Europe has stated that children and teenagers should not be disciplined for the misdeeds of adults.

“Football should never give up sending messages of peace and hope,” the organization said in a statement.

When the invasion was carried out on a larger scale in February of 2022, Uefa made the decision to expel all Russian teams from European competitions.

In addition to this, the rights to host the Champions League final in 2022 and the Super Cup in 2023 were withdrawn. These events were scheduled to take place in Saint Petersburg and Kazan, respectively. Additionally, the sponsorship arrangement with the state-owned energy company Gazprom was terminated.

Uefa has “reiterated its condemnation of Russia’s illegal war” according to a statement released by the organization, and it has confirmed that all other Russian teams will continue to be suspended.

Uefa’s decision to maintain its ban of Russian adult teams is evidence of the organization’s determination to speak out against acts of aggressiveness and violence. Uefa is resolute in its commitment to maintain this position until the conflict is resolved and peace is re-established, as stated by the president of the organization, Aleksander Ceferin.

“However, by preventing children from participating in our competitions, we not only fail to acknowledge and preserve a fundamental right for the children’s overall development, but we also discriminate against them in a direct manner.

“We are investing in what we hope will be a brighter and more capable future generation and a better tomorrow by providing opportunities for them to play and compete with their peers from all over Europe,”

The Uefa executive committee has requested that the organization’s administration “propose a technical solution” to the problem of re-admitting teams to U17 competitions after such competitions have already begun.