The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) announced on Friday that it has annulled the decisions of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) that had banned Russia from events in the 2026-27 season, including the men's and women's world hockey championships.
Reason for Annulment of IIHF Decisions
CAS stated in a statement that there was insufficient evidence to support the security concerns that the IIHF cited in its decisions. The court also ordered that the IIHF must allow Russia to participate in the next five tournaments, including the men's world hockey championship in Germany scheduled for next May and the women's world hockey championship in Canada in November 2027.
Impact of the Ruling on Tournaments
The first tournament affected by this ruling is the men's junior world hockey championship, which begins on December 26 in Edmonton. Additionally, the women's world hockey championship hosted by Denmark starting on November 6 was not mentioned in the statement.
Russia's Minister of Sports, Mikhail Degtyaryov, praised the CAS ruling and wrote on the Telegram app that CAS "recognized the demands of the Russian Hockey Federation on key points as valid."
The International Ice Hockey Federation also expressed disappointment with this ruling, stating that "its decisions were essential for the safety and security of all participants and for maintaining the integrity of the competitions." The IIHF emphasized that despite respecting the CAS authority, the security concerns that led to its decisions remain.
The German Ice Hockey Association, DEB, is also disappointed with this decision. Frank Lutz, the president of DEB, said: "Our position has not changed: we reject the return of Russian national teams to international ice hockey tournaments."
The International Ice Hockey Federation has banned Russian teams from its competitions since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. This means that Russia was also excluded from this year's Olympic hockey competitions in Milan.
Russia and its predecessor, the Soviet Union, are among the most successful countries in the field of ice hockey, having won 27 men's world championships, just one less than Canada (28 championships).
The ruling on Friday was issued as the IIHF recently elected a new president, with Franz Reindl from Germany appointed to replace Luc Tardif from France.
