The International Ice Hockey Federation has confirmed that Russia and Belarus will remain excluded from all senior and club competitions for the 2026-27 season. The decision followed the IIHF Council’s latest meeting and security review.
In its statement, the IIHF said it is “not yet safe to reintegrate” Russian and Belarusian teams. The ban continues a suspension first imposed in February 2022.
The response from the Russian Ice Hockey Federation was swift. Their statement even got shared on X, in which the federation rejected the IIHF’s reasoning.
“The RIHF believes that the argument regarding the impossibility of ensuring the safety of participants in international tournaments involving Russian national teams is no longer relevant, lacks any basis, and is merely a formal pretext for denying our country’s participation.” The RIHF statement reads.
The Russian Federation also announced plans to appeal the ruling to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The move signals Russia’s intent to challenge the ban through legal channels rather than wait for future reviews.
Soon after the statement was posted, hockey fans began reacting to it.
“If Russia’s banned so should the US,” One fan wrote.
“Can’t say they are wrong. They were 10X worse politically in ‘70s and ‘80s and played every international event. It’s not best on best without them, period. If they are so bad now, why can their players play ?” Another fan said.
“Why punish guys for something they can’t control? Seriously so stupid. We want to see Kucherov, Kaprizov and others play internationally” One fan wrote.
“What about that war here in Europe? They are stealing land from Ukraine. Fix that situation, stop the war, and return the land you’ve stolen to Ukraine. Then we can look at this puck-toy game.” A fan said.
“It’s not a real gold medal if there’s no Russians,” One fan reacted.
“Literally let them play the athletes are not the government,” A fan wrote.
IIHF’s Statement on Russia’s Ban in the 2026-27 Season.
The IIHF has maintained that the ban is based on safety purposes. Russia and Belarus remain barred from top-level international hockey through at least the 2026-27 season.
“The IIHF Council believes it is not yet safe to reintegrate the Russian and Belarusian National and Club Teams to its championships for the 2026-2027 season,” The IIHF’s statement reads. “As the current security conditions do not allow the necessary requirements for the organization of tournaments, guaranteeing the safety of all.”
However, the IIHF has also thought about reconsidering the under-18 players’ participation in 1017-28 season, if the situation looks safe in their future risk assessments. This was done after the IOC’s recommendations.
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