On December 13, during the draw for the 2026 World Cup, which will be held in North America (Mexico, United States, Canada), FIFA presented a map of Ukraine without Crimea. However, this Eastern European peninsula, located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, is an integral part of Ukraine according to international law, even if it has been occupied by Russia since 2014.
The visual shown by FIFA indicated the countries that cannot compete for geopolitical reasons, such as Ukraine and Belarus, Spain and Gibraltar, as well as Kosovo and Bosnia-Herzegovina or Serbia. Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhiy Tykhy said on his X account that FIFA had acted “against international law” and supported “Russian propaganda, war crimes and aggression against Ukraine.” He demanded a public apology from the world Football body. Ukrainian authorities called the incident an “unacceptable mistake.”
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In response, FIFA acknowledged the problem with one of the visuals displayed during the draw and clarified that it had already addressed the situation with the Ukrainian Federation. The graphic in question has since been removed. The Ukrainian Football Federation also reacted with a letter addressed to Mathias Grafström, FIFA Secretary General. In this letter, she expresses her serious concern regarding the infographic presented on December 13, stressing that this map, taking into account the official decisions taken by FIFA and UEFA since 2014, is “totally unacceptable” and reflects an inconsistent position. from these two authorities. The 2026 World Cup will begin in June in Mexico and end in July in the United States.
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