February 10 – Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko has said that he will be submitting a bill on quotas of foreign players this week. The draft law will outline eligibility criteria for players which will include age, proof of standard of the player and terms of their employment and length of stay in Russia.
Speaking to news agency TASS Mutko said: “We have received an endorsement from the presidential legal department concerning the bill regulating foreign athletes in sports. I will be introducing the bill to a government’s session in the nearest future. I hope it (the bill) will be submitted with the State Duma this month.”
Called ‘Legionnaires’, there had been criticism by Mutko and Igor Ananskikh, the head of the State Duma’s Committee for Physical Culture and Sport, when the executive committee of the Russian Football Union (RFU) approved a limit of ’10+15′ limit foreign players at clubs (10 legionnaires plus 15 Russian players).
Mutko and Ananskikh argued that the new formula was excessive and undermined the development of football in Russia. “The adopted limit leads to commercialisation of certain football clubs, but contradicts interests of the national sports development,” said Ananskikh. “The issue of legionnaires is particularly important in the run up to the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which will be held in Russia.”
The Russian Premier League currently operates the ‘7+4’ formula – no more than seven foreign players on the pitch for one club at the same time.
Mutko was again critical of the RFU, which he has continually criticised in recent months for its failure to deal with its financial crisis, saying: “We have informed the federations that in line with presidential orders the government will be setting a limit for each sport separately. There was no need to hustle and make long-term decisions on limits without any consultations. Some of the sports, particularly football, failed to consult.”
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