According to Tass news agency, the Russian Football Association announced on the 20th (local time) that the AFC transfer plan was unanimously rejected in an internal vote.
Akmed Idamirov, vice president of the Russian Football Association, said, “We have decided not to move to Asia, and we will fight to regain UEFA qualifications,” adding, “Russia is Europe and we will win.”
The result of the vote also seems to have affected the negative outlook that FIFA will not approve Russia’s transfer to AFC anyway.
Mikhail Gershkovic, a member of the Russian Football Association and former head coach of the Russian national team, told the RIA Novosti news agency that “FIFA voted unanimously because there is no guarantee that it will approve (the transfer).”
UEFA disqualified the Russian Football Association just four days after Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year. As a result, teams from the Russian Football Association will not be allowed to participate in soccer competitions hosted by UEFA.
Russian professional soccer team Spartak Moscow, which was in the round of 16 in the UEFA Europa League at the time, was disqualified, and the UEFA Champions League final, which was scheduled to be held in St. Petersburg, Russia in May of the same year, was also changed to Paris, France.