Zelensky Rejected by FIFA for Final Match Video Screening: "There Are No Champions in War"

"War Has No Champions or Draws... War Must End in Failure"

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated in a video message sent to the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) ahead of the World Cup final, "There are no champions in war. There can be no draws."

According to the Washington Post on the 18th (local time), President Zelenskyy requested FIFA to screen the video message before the World Cup final, but it was reportedly not approved. The final match between Argentina and France took place that day.

In a separate video released by Ukraine, President Zelenskyy congratulated the football match held "not on a red battlefield but on a green field," emphasizing that "war must end in failure." He also appealed for Russia to cease its invasion and for the international community to support Ukraine.

However, FIFA has made extreme efforts to exclude political messages from the World Cup, and in that process, it reportedly rejected the screening of President Zelenskyy’s video message.

The Ukrainian presidential office criticized, "Qatar supported the plan to screen the president’s video, but FIFA rejected it," adding, "FIFA has lost the spirit of football as a game that unites people rather than divides them."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.