Ice hockey: Russia is allowed to take part – Germany is considering returning the World Cup

The Ice Hockey World Cup in Germany is on the brink. Following the ruling by the International Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) approving Russia, the German Ice Hockey Federation (DEB) is considering returning the tournament next year - and is calling on politicians to help. "I don't want to do any pessimism," said DEB CEO Frank H. Lutz on MagentaTV: "But of course we have to look at the option of returning this World Cup."

Lutz cited financial reasons. “We cannot place ourselves in an economic risk that we can no longer bear,” said Lutz. He is optimistic, though. However, he “cannot say 100 percent today” whether the World Cup will actually take place next May in Düsseldorf, Mannheim and Gelsenkirchen. If Russia, which is now allowed to take part in tournaments organized by the world association IIHF following Friday's Cas ruling, were to take part, the organizer would face "completely new costs", mainly in terms of security.

Lutz announced that because it was “also a political decision,” he would be traveling to Berlin next week. There is also the question of whether the Russian team will even receive visas. "I don't have a feeling for it at all yet," said the DEB CEO: "That will certainly be the subject of the discussions as to how far the federal government is prepared to go."

A spokesman for the federal government said that the CAS decision was “very critical” when asked by the SID. “There should be an exchange with the German Ice Hockey Association “in the near future” about the possible consequences of the verdict, including on the 2027 Ice Hockey World Cup in Germany. "In general, it should be noted that since the beginning of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, which violates international law, the federal government has been advocating a uniformly restrictive visa policy towards Russia within the Schengen member states."

Canada, where the U20 World Cup will take place at the end of the year, has already declared that it will not issue visas. The Dutch authorities also refused entry to Olympic champion and defending champion Angelina Melnikova at the World Gymnastics Championships in Amsterdam in October - apparently because of her proximity to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Russian athletes have already been allowed to compete in Germany: for example at the World Championships in Rhythmic Gymnastics in Frankfurt am Main, at the Junior European Swimming Championships in Munich and at the Para-Ski World Cup.

But first the IIHF has to decide what to do next. German President Franz Reindl announced a meeting of the Council at the beginning of the week. The ex-national player told the SID that they would “work closely with everyone to find practical solutions.”

Russia was suspended from the IIHF after its war of aggression began in Ukraine - officially due to security concerns. In the world rankings, however, the team continued to receive points based on its third place at the time - which led to the absurd situation in which the 27-time world champion is currently number one in the ranking, but is only listed in the footnote. This placement would guarantee participation in the upcoming World Cup.