Ottawa is pushing back against a sports court ruling that puts Russia back in international hockey. Those Canadian restrictions — the ones on Russian athletes at events in this country that receive federal funding — will stay in place, the federal government said Friday. Ruling or no ruling.
Friday’s ruling came from the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne. It orders the International Ice Hockey Federation to let Russian teams back into its events for the 2026-27 season. The IIHF had kept them out on safety and security grounds. The panel was not persuaded, finding the evidence behind those concerns fell short. What happens with flags and anthems, the court did not say. It never addressed whether Russia’s teams would compete under their own national symbols or as neutrals.
The ban on Russia and Belarus from IIHF tournaments goes back to Feb. 28, 2022, days after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It had survived every season since, until Friday.
Anita Anand was in Atlanta, at the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting, when she responded for Canada. The foreign affairs minister said:
“Canada is extremely disappointed by this decision to allow Russia to compete in these junior hockey events. We strongly oppose this outcome.”
Anand said Canada is exploring further options to ensure the Russian government is held accountable. Adam van Koeverden, the secretary of state for sport, echoed her in a statement, saying Canada’s position since 2022 is that Russia should not be represented in international sport while its invasion of Ukraine continues.
The first place the ruling lands is Canada. In a statement Friday, the IIHF put the number of affected tournaments in 2027 at five. Two are in Canada. The world junior men’s championship opens Dec. 26 in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta. Quebec City hosts the women’s world championship in 2027.
Hockey Canada called the ruling a disappointment. It wants clarity on what the decision means for the tournaments ahead, and it is already talking to the IIHF. It has also briefed the federal government. Ottawa, by Hockey Canada’s account, had not yet committed any money to the world juniors. Alberta put up $11 million in 2024 to host hockey events, that tournament among them.
Russia’s hockey federation, for its part, says it plans to be in Alberta. In a statement posted to its English-language X account, it identified the world junior championship as its next major tournament.
The IIHF, which said it was disappointed with the ruling and maintains its decisions were needed to protect participants, warned that putting Russia back into fields this late will not be simple. The federation said the ruling has significant practical implications for competitions already at an advanced stage of preparation, and that the court’s decisions do not consider practical elements that cannot be implemented immediately.
Canada was not alone in objecting. Finland, Sweden, Germany and Czechia reacted much the same way, their hockey federations issuing statements Friday that expressed dismay at the ruling.
In Finland, federation chair Heikki Hietanen wrote that no player or team official is under any obligation to take part in a tournament in which Russia or Belarus is involved, and that his federation understands and supports those who would rather stay away.
Germany’s problem is concrete. It hosts the men’s world championship in 2027, and Ukraine has qualified for that tournament too. “Allowing Russia to participate would have significant security, political, and economic consequences for us as hosts,” German federation board chair Frank H. Lutz wrote.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith took a different line. She acknowledged the difficulty of the situation but said she would not try to block Russia’s participation in the world juniors.
The ruling also reaches a tournament that has not yet set its field. Canada and Czechia will co-host the eight-country World Cup of Hockey in 2028 — Edmonton and Calgary are the Canadian host cities — and the NHL had not announced the full field before Friday. Deputy commissioner Bill Daly said in a statement that the ruling is a relevant piece of information the league will weigh when its turn comes to decide.
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