The General Secretary of the Russian Football Union (RFU) Maxim Mitrofanov spoke about negotiations with the United States Football Federation at the FIFA Congress regarding the possible holding of friendly matches. This was reported by 'Glaikom'.
The FIFA Congress took place on May 15 in Asuncion (Paraguay).
- Did you discuss with the representatives of the USA at the FIFA Congress about holding matches, possibly at the youth level?
- We are negotiating with everyone and have also spoken with our colleagues from the USA. However, we only provide comments when we reach a final agreement, - Mitrofanov told Russian propagandists.
In June, the Russian national team played two friendly matches, winning against Belarus (4:1) and drawing with Nigeria (1:1).
FIFA and UEFA suspended Russian national teams and clubs from participating in tournaments under their auspices indefinitely in 2022 due to the war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
2026 World Cup. Qualifying Cycle
UEFA (Europe) has 16 slots for qualification. The qualifiers in the European zone will last from March 2025 to March 2026 and will consist of two rounds.
1st Round of Qualification: 12 groups of five or four teams will compete from March to November 2025 using the traditional group system. 12 group winners will receive direct slots for the final stage.
12 teams that finish second and the four best group winners from the Nations League, who finish below second place in the European qualification group stage, will participate in playoff mini-tournaments.
2nd Round of Qualification: the playoff mini-tournaments in March 2026 will consist of single-match semifinals and finals. 16 participants will be divided into four playoff paths. Four winners will receive slots for the World Cup.
The General Secretary of the RFU Maxim Mitrofanov spoke about negotiations with the United States Football Federation at the FIFA Congress regarding the possible holding of friendly matches. He noted that comments would be provided only after achieving a final agreement. Recall that in June the Russian national team played two friendly matches, but FIFA and UEFA suspended Russian national teams from participating in their tournaments due to the conflict with Ukraine.