Russia, China likely to play friendly football match next year — Russian football chief

ST. PETERSBURG, June 5. /TASS/. The Russian Football Union (RFU) is in talks to organize a friendly football match between the national teams of Russia and China in 2027, Alexander Dyukov, the president of the Russian Football Union (RFU), told journalists on Friday.

"We are in discussions with the Chinese Football Association [CFA] regarding the organization of a friendly match between men’s national teams. It is more likely that it would be organized next year," Dyukov said speaking on the sidelines of the 29th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

The world’s governing football body, FIFA, announced on February 28, 2022, that the Russian national team and all professional clubs representing the country were barred from participating in FIFA tournaments.

In turn, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) made a similar decision regarding the Russian national football team’s participation in UEFA tournaments.

Both FIFA and UEFA cited Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine as grounds for their respective bans on Russian teams’ participation in competitions.

The 2026 St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) is taking place on June 3-6 and is the 29th edition. This year, the event is held under the theme "Pragmatic Dialogue: the Path to a Stable Future." Saudi Arabia is the guest country at SPIEF. The forum program is dedicated to shaping a new model of global development amid the ongoing transformation of the world economy.

The program includes the SME Forum, the Creative Industries Forum, the Day of the Future International Youth Economic Forum, and the Ensuring Drug Security Forum. As part of the cultural program, the Petersburg Seasons festival and the traditional SPIEF Sports Games will take place. This year, Russia’s national economic development institution VEB.RF is the title partner of SPIEF.

The Roscongress Foundation is the organizer of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. TASS is its official general information partner.