National teams of two countries have refused to play against the russian team at the 2027 Ice Hockey World Championship

Norway and Finland have announced that their national teams will not take to the ice against the russian team, which, under a ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne, is to return to international tournaments, “The Moscow Times” Telegram channel reported on November 3.

It is noted that Helsinki intends to encourage other countries to join the boycott and organize a collective refusal to participate in matches against the russian team. Lithuania, meanwhile, is prohibited from playing against it by law.

Many countries have expressed disagreement with the CAS ruling, which upheld russia's appeal and ordered the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) to immediately reinstate it in competitions for the first time since March 2022. However, while the sports authorities in Sweden and Denmark decided not to boycott the matches despite their disappointment with the CAS position, Norwegian officials made an official statement: "Norway will not play against russia at the World Championship in Germany in May 2027. The remaining matches in the group will go ahead as scheduled. Our position that russia should be excluded from all international championships for as long as the war in Ukraine continues remains unchanged".