Russia, Belarus to remain banned from IIHF tournaments in 2025-26; Olympic participation to be decided
The International Ice Hockey Federation Council has voted to ban Russia and Belarus from the 2025-26 international hockey season.
Neither country can participate in IIHF-hosted tournaments, such as the World Championship or World Juniors. The ban has been in place since the start of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
“As the current security conditions do not allow the necessary requirements for the organization of tournaments guaranteeing the safety of all, the IIHF must maintain the current status quo until further notice.”
The decision to allow Russia to participate in the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan will be decided by the International Olympic Committee. Belarus was not permitted to participate in the Olympic qualification tournament, preventing them from participating in the main event in Italy next year.
The IIHF said they will evaluate whether to reincorporate the two teams back into tournament competition by May 2026.
Other non-IIHF events have elected to bar Russia and Belarus from participating in recent years, such as the Hlinka Gretzky Cup, Euro Hockey Tour and other various four and five nation events. Those bans are unlikely to change, with both teams expected to continue playing against each other, Kazakhstan and a KHL import team in select events.
“Over the course of three years, the Russian Ice Hockey Federation and I have actively worked with the IIHF and the entire hockey family to secure Russia’s return to the international scene,” former NHLer Pavel Bure and Russian Hockey Federation representative said. “During this time, we have managed to ensure that our partners are listening to our stance. I made speeches on three occasions during the last meeting, whereas previously we hadn’t been allowed to explain our position or even be at the meetings.
“One of the IIHF’s arguments for not permitting Russia to compete in its tournaments is the issue of safety,” Bure continued. “In our opinion, this argument does not hold enough strength. More than 50 Russians play in the NHL. Russian swimmers, chess players and representatives of other sports are participating in international competitions without any incidents being recorded. One of our suggestions was to finance additional security for Russia, in order to allow fans across the planet to watch one of the world’s best teams in action again.
Despite not playing in IIHF competition since the 2022 Olympics, Russia is the second-ranked IIHF men’s team, moving up one spot from 2023 following the most recent World Championship. Belarus sits 16th on the men’s side, while Russia is sixth in the women’s rankings (Belarus does not have a women’s team).