After Donald Trump’s comments, could Russian football be brought in from the cold?

The rhetoric around the prospect of peace talks between Ukraine and Russia ramped up in recent days.

Earlier this week, U.S. President Donald Trump suggested Ukraine was responsible for Russia’s invasion of their country. Then Trump called Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky a “dictator without elections”.

It is important to note that there is no doubt Russia started the war by invading Ukraine, and Zelensky was democratically elected in 2019. Elections were due to be held in 2024 but were suspended under martial law due to the invasion.

But the U.S. President’s comments have kickstarted a discussion in sport about Russia being allowed back into the fold if a peace deal is struck. How would that happen? And how far away are they from potentially returning to international football?

The Athletic answers the key questions…

What happened after the war broke out?

In February 2022, football’s global governing body FIFA and UEFA, the governing body for Europe, released a joint statement to announce they had suspended all Russian clubs and national teams from participating in their competitions “until further notice”.

“Football is fully united here and in full solidarity with…