Estonian FA: We stand for Ukraine, for Estonia, and against Russia
The Estonian Estonian Football Association (EJL) has issued a statement clarifying its stance and support for Ukraine.
This follows comments from EJL president Aivar Pohlak on UEFA's financial support for Russian clubs, which have sparked debate.
The EJL's full statement is as follows:
The EJL has since the start of the war supported Ukraine both in words and in actions, and has opposed Russia's aggression. Our message is clear: [We are] For Estonia, in support of Ukraine, and against Russia's aggression.
When Russia initiated the war in February 2022, the EJL immediately expressed support to its Ukrainian colleagues. The EJL, several clubs plus members of the Estonian football community organized actions in support of Ukraine, and quickly collected more than €60,000. To contribute to the adaptation of Ukrainian refugees in Estonia, the EJL exempted Ukrainian youth from license fees when participating in Estonian championships.
The EJL delegation met with, among others, a delegation from the Ukrainian Rada, and cooperation projects were organized, during which time Ukrainian football teams visited Estonia. At the FIFA congress, the EJL was one of four associations who voted against adding Russian as one of FIFA's official languages.
In 2022, the Estonian Defense Forces added the EJL to the list of employers supporting national defenders, in so doing recognizing the EJL's activities in supporting employees taking part in defense forces exercises. This has continued in the ensuing years.
Alongside our acts, we have repeatedly expressed our support for Ukraine in words. The EJL cannot answer for or be responsible for UEFA, but we did ask UEFA for clarification on how much money has flowed during the war years from UEFA to the Ukrainian and Russian associations and clubs.
We have now received a response and are sharing it publicly. UEFA's response was that since Russian clubs and national teams have been struck off from UEFA competitions, they have not received money for competitions, while Ukraine has received nearly €158 million from UEFA, over the three years of war.
According to UEFA, one Ukrainian club has not received money, as the bank they use is not accepted by the bank making the UEFA payments. The €10.8 million for Russian clubs mentioned in the international media is UEFA solidarity money, of which Ukrainian clubs have received €17 million during the same period.
It is important to us that supporters, football fans, and partners understand us correctly. This message was also carried in last Friday's meeting with our main sponsor, LHV, which has been reported on in the media. We acknowledged that a recent TV interview did raise some questions and confusion.
We apologized for that situation and pledged to express ourselves unambiguously going forward. Our message is clear: For Estonia, in support of Ukraine, and against Russia's aggression.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Kristjan Kallaste
