Ministry of Sport answered the question whether Ukraine will withdraw from the Euro 2024 football qualifiers

The Ukrainian Football Association (UAF) will decide on its own whether to participate in the 2024 UEFA European Championship qualifiers after the Ministry of Sport banned our athletes from competing in tournaments where representatives of Russia and Belarus are allowed to participate. Our country's northern neighbours are participating in the qualification for the championship, but are in a different group at this stage.

This was stated in a commentary to Suspilne by Deputy Minister of Sports of Ukraine Matviy Bidnyi. He noted that the issue of whether our players will continue to fight for a ticket to the Euro in Germany will be considered later. The official also answered the question of whether the UAF could be stripped of its national federation status if the Blue and Yellows do not withdraw from the UEFA European Championship qualifiers.

"The main decision will be made by the federation, the UAF. I think we have enough time to reconcile our positions. I know that they will compete in different groups and will not directly overlap within the same event. We will see how it goes. I would like to emphasise that the order was issued in such a way that the decision to deprive a federation of its national status is made by the commission. In this case, it is not aimed at depriving or punishing anyone on a formal basis. The point is that in each case, the position of the federation will be considered, how it will defend the interests of our state in wartime," Bidnyi said.

It will be recalled that Ukrainian footballers had an unsuccessful start to the Euro 2024 qualifiers. In the second round at the legendary Wembley Stadium, Ruslan Rotan's men lost to England 0-2. In June, the Blue and Yellows will play North Macedonia (16 June) and Malta (19 June).

As OBOZREVATEL previously reported, Olympic champion Svetlana Zhurova called on the International Olympic Committee to consider depriving Ukraine of its flag and anthem at international tournaments following the decree of the Ministry of Sports.

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