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FIFA, world football’s governing body, issued an apology after they excluded Crimea as part of Ukraine in a map during the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifying draw. FIFA cited the problem to an “external third-party service provider” issue and added that “immediate steps” were being taken to address the matter.
The incident happened during the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifying draw last week when FIFA displayed a map of countries that cannot be drawn to lock horns against each other due to geopolitical tensions. A couple of these examples include Ukraine and Belarus, and Spain and Gibraltar.
While the map did display Ukraine, it did not show the Crimean peninsula as part of the country. During their initial invasion of Ukraine in 2014, Russia had occupied Crimea and eventually annexed from Ukraine. However, only a few countries observe Crimea as part of Russia.
“We fully understand the delicate sensitivity of this matter and while the incident was unintentional, we sincerely regret any concern it may have caused,” FIFA Chief Member Associations Officer Elkhan Mammadov wrote in a letter to Igor Gryshchenko, General Secretary of Ukrainian Association of Football.
“Upon recognising the issue, we have taken immediate steps to address the situation, including working to have the image removed from circulation. Additionally, we are conducting an internal review to ensure such oversights do not recur in the future,” the letter added.
Heorhiy Tykhyi, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s foreign ministry, had demanded a public apology from FIFA for the blunder they have caused. He claimed that not only did FIFA “act against international law” but also “supported Russian propaganda, war crimes, and the crime of aggression against Ukraine”.
Ukraine have been drawn in Group D for the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers along with Iceland and Azerbaijan. France and Croatia face off in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Nations League in March next year, and the winner of that match will join Ukraine, Iceland and Azerbaijan in Group D.
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