Finland’s political leaders have criticised a ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) that could allow Russian national ice hockey teams to return to international competitions, arguing that the country should remain excluded while its war against Ukraine continues.
The decision, announced on Friday, has prompted strong reactions across Finland, with several senior politicians questioning whether Russia should be allowed to compete under its national flag while the invasion of Ukraine is ongoing.
Speaking to Finnish public broadcaster Yle on Monday, Sports Minister Mika Poutala of the Christian Democrats said Russia’s return to international sport was not appropriate at this time. He added that he had discussed the issue with Sweden’s sports minister, Jakob Forssmed, and that both countries shared a similar position.
“At least with Sweden, we clearly share a common view on this: that it’s not the time for Russia to return to ice hockey, or to sports in general, especially not under its national colours,” Poutala told Yle.
Under the CAS ruling, Russian men’s and women’s national teams could once again participate in the Ice Hockey World Championships and the World Junior Championships. The decision overturns the exclusion imposed by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The IIHF had previously suspended Russian and Belarusian teams from its international competitions, citing concerns about the safety and security of players, officials and other participants.
However, CAS concluded that there was insufficient evidence to support the security concerns presented by the IIHF as grounds for continuing Russia’s exclusion.
In response to the ruling, the IIHF maintained that its earlier decision was necessary to protect participants and preserve the integrity of its competitions. The federation said it continued to stand by the measures it had taken.
The ruling has created a particular challenge for the organisers of next year’s men’s ice hockey world championship in Germany, where Ukraine has also qualified. Russia’s potential participation would therefore place the tournament in a difficult position, given the ongoing war between the two countries.
Finland, which is the reigning world champion after defeating Switzerland in a dramatic final in May, is expected to participate in the tournament in accordance with the CAS decision. However, Poutala said Finland was not necessarily obliged to take part if the circumstances surrounding the competition became unacceptable.
He noted that the final decision on Finland’s participation rests with the Finnish Ice Hockey Association, leaving the national governing body to consider how the country should respond.
Several Finnish politicians have already called for Finland to withdraw from the tournament if Russian teams are allowed to compete.
Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen of the National Coalition Party addressed the issue in a post on X on Sunday, warning that Russian athletes would not be welcome in Finland next year if the war in Ukraine continued.
“Russian athletes will have no business coming to Finland next year,” Valtonen wrote, adding that she intended to advance the necessary measures in the coming days.
Speaker of Parliament Jussi Halla-aho of the Finns Party also expressed opposition to Russia’s return. In a Facebook post, he argued that Finland should skip the championship if Russian teams were permitted to participate.
President Alexander Stubb has also criticised the CAS decision. Speaking on Yle’s Ykkösaamu programme on Saturday morning, he said he disagreed with the ruling, adding to the growing political opposition to Russia’s possible return to international ice hockey.
The debate now extends beyond the legal decision itself. While CAS has overturned the IIHF’s exclusion, Finnish political leaders are questioning whether participation in the same international tournament as Russian teams is acceptable while the war in Ukraine continues. The Finnish Ice Hockey Association will ultimately have to consider Finland’s position as preparations for next year’s championship continue.
