Russians are being returned to ice hockey world championships. Belarusians left out
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) has already circulated the schedule for the 2027 U20 World Championship with Russia's participation. However, the Belarusian men's and U20 national teams were denied a return. The teams, which were suspended together in 2022, now find themselves in different situations.
The updated schedule was announced by the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation. The Russian U20 national team is expected to take the place of Norway, which is being relegated to the first division.
Russia is placed in a group with Canada, Switzerland, Latvia, and Finland. The tournament will take place from December 26, 2026, to January 5, 2027, in Edmonton and Red Deer, Canada. A match between Russia and Switzerland is already scheduled for December 27 in the updated schedule.
For Belarus, the decision is different. On November 7, the IIHF confirmed that the Belarusian U20 national team and the men's national team will not participate in the 2027 World Championships.
The Ice Hockey Federation of Belarus appealed the restrictions to the IIHF's internal disciplinary body. The body partially granted the appeal but stated that it had no legal grounds to order the immediate return of Belarusians to the tournaments.
Following this, the IIHF Council again denied admission. It cited already approved competition formats, schedules, ticket sales, and organizational plans.
The Russian Federation achieved a different outcome through the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne. On October 30, the court obliged the IIHF to admit Russian teams to a number of international tournaments.
Belarusian and Russian teams were suspended together on February 28, 2022, after the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Now, the Russians have secured a separate decision in their favor, while the Belarusian national and U20 teams still remain excluded from the World Championships.