Russia Back in FIFA Competition? Under-15s Included in U15 World Cup Draw

Four years of exile, and now a crack in the wall. FIFA has included Russia’s Under-15 side in the group-stage draw for the Under-15 World Cup, a brand-new tournament to be staged in Azerbaijan. The Russian youngsters land in a six-team pool with Turkey, Afghanistan, Djibouti, Sierra Leone and Sudan. Just a youth tournament, some will say. But it is the first time since the 2022 ban that any Russian team has appeared in a FIFA competition. In football, gestures like this are never small.

What FIFA has actually decided

FIFA has placed Russia Under-15s in a six-team group at the Under-15 World Cup in Azerbaijan, alongside Turkey, Afghanistan, Djibouti, Sierra Leone and Sudan. It is the first appearance of a Russian national side in a FIFA competition since the suspension imposed in 2022, following the invasion of Ukraine.

The choice of format is telling. An Under-15 category, a tournament that did not exist before, a host nation on good terms with Moscow. FIFA is testing the water with the least explosive file it could find. Nobody sees 14-year-olds as political tools, which is exactly what makes the door easier to nudge open.

The ban on Russia’s senior teams remains in place. Russia missed the 2022 World Cup, Euro 2024 and qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. There is no indication yet that the senior side is covered by this softening.

Why this matters to English football

The FA has been among the loudest voices against Russian reintegration. When UEFA tried to readmit Russian Under-17 teams in 2023, England, along with Poland and the Nordic nations, made clear they would refuse to play them. That resistance helped force UEFA into a U-turn. FIFA’s move now puts the same question back on the table.

For Premier League clubs, the stakes are practical as well as moral. Before 2022, Zenit, CSKA Moscow and Spartak were regular Champions League and Europa League opponents. Their absence has freed up places and prize money for other federations. A gradual return would eventually reshuffle that deck.

England’s senior team will not face Russia any time soon. Euro 2028 qualifying is set to go ahead without them unless UEFA changes course. The immediate debate at Wembley is whether the FA will publicly object to FIFA’s decision, as it did with UEFA two years ago.

A precedent for UEFA and the IOC?

FIFA’s decision could trigger a domino effect. UEFA’s failed 2023 attempt to bring back Russian Under-17s showed how divided Europe remains. FIFA is now trying the same logic with an even younger age group and a global rather than European stage.

The International Olympic Committee already allowed Russian athletes to compete under a neutral flag at Paris 2024. World sport is moving in small steps, never formally announcing a full return. The Under-15 World Cup fits neatly into that strategy of gradual reintegration.

One unknown remains: which flag and which anthem will these Under-15s play under? FIFA has not yet set out the conditions. That detail will reveal how far normalisation really goes.

What to take away

Russia Under-15s will play at the Under-15 World Cup in Azerbaijan in a group with Turkey, Afghanistan, Djibouti, Sierra Leone and Sudan. It is the first softening of the FIFA ban since 2022. Russian senior teams and clubs remain excluded from international competition.

For England fans, the immediate impact is nil. But FIFA’s direction of travel is clear: Russia’s return is being prepared one rung at a time. The question is no longer if, but when.

FAQ