Russia no longer has a seat on UEFA Executive Committee

Russia will no longer have a representative on the UEFA Executive Committee after the April 3 elections in Belgrade, the Serbian capital. Aleksandr Dyukov, the president of the Russian Football Federation and chief executive of Gazprom Neft, is not on the list of candidates published by UEFA, marking the end of Russia's direct influence on European football's governing body.

• Dyukov's exclusion and the impact on Russian football

Dyukov was elected to the UEFA Executive Committee in 2021 and had previously expressed his intention to run for a new four-year term. However, UEFA announced that the Russian official had not applied for a new term and was not considered eligible. He has also continued to attend UEFA meetings and matches in Europe despite being on the UK government's sanctions list, and Russian teams have been suspended from international competition since the start of the war in Ukraine in February 2022.

Dyukov's exclusion comes as UEFA removed Gazprom as a sponsor of the Champions League and moved the 2022 final from Saint Petersburg. This means that for the first time in decades, Russia will have no representation in the governing bodies of UEFA and FIFA.

• Lise Klaveness, first woman to fill new dedicated seat on the Executive Committee

Another important aspect of UEFA's April elections is the appointment of Norwegian Lise Klaveness as a member of the Executive Committee, following a recent decision to add an additional seat for women. Klaveness, who unsuccessfully ran for a regular position on the Executive Committee two years ago, is the only candidate for the new seat reserved for women, effectively guaranteeing her election. Alongside her, Welshwoman Laura McAllister will become UEFA vice-president, marking a major step towards greater representation of women in European football's governing bodies.

• New faces at UEFA

In addition to the changes mentioned above, the elections in April will also bring other new names to UEFA's leadership. Among the candidates is Andriy Shevchenko, former AC Milan great and current president of the Ukrainian Football Federation, who is running for one of two two-year terms. Also, Portugal's Pedro Proenca, a former top referee, is among the 11 candidates for a full four-year term.

At the same meeting, UEFA's 55 member associations will also confirm their five representatives on the FIFA Council for the next four years. Among them is Pascal van Damme, the first woman to hold the position of president of the Belgian Football Federation. The UEFA elections in April will mark the end of Russian influence in European football and will bring a significant change in the composition of the Executive Committee.