Russia Banned From Qatar 2022 World Cup
By Ross Jackson
Russia will play no part at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after the country's ban from all global sporting activities was set to two years.
The country originally received a four-year ban after anti-doping regulators accused them of running one of the most sophisticated drug schemes in sporting history.
Following appeal, the Court of Arbitration for Sport has now halved the original four-year ban which was issued in 2019, however, that does still mean that they will not be able to take part at the World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
The ban also means they will miss the rescheduled Olympics in Tokyo next summer and the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.
Stanislav Cherchesov's men had been drawn in Group H for the World Cup qualifiers which are scheduled to kick off in March 2021. The group contained a number of tricky opponents including the 2018 World Cup finalists Croatia, with Slovakia, Slovenia, Cyprus and Malta making up the rest of the group.
Russia enjoyed a stellar 2018 World Cup on home turf, finishing runners up in Group A to emerge to the knockout rounds thanks to convincing wins against Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
In the round of 16 they provided one of the shocks of the tournament against Spain, with Artem Dzyuba's first-half penalty cancelling out Sergei Ignashevich's own goal, before triumphing 4-3 on penalties.
However, their incredible run would be thwarted at the quarter-final stage as they came up against eventual runners-up Croatia, drawing 2-2 before being knocked out 4-3 on penalties.
Despite Russia being banned from the World Cup in 2022, some Russian athletes will still be able to compete at events as neutrals, though the Russian flag and the country's national anthem will not be permitted until the four-year ban has been served.