MOSCOW, February 27, Alexander Sergeev. Sports lawyer Artem Patsev said that The International Football Federation (FIFA) may not follow the rules in the case of the refusal of the national teams of Poland and Sweden to participate in play-offs against the Russians. Previously, the football federations of Poland and Sweden refused to play-offs with the Russian team for the right to participate in the World Cup in Qatar, regardless of whether where the meetings will take place. «Anything can happen now. Regulations may or may not apply, depending on the interpretation of the principle of fairness by the arbitrators. We see this in the Olympic awards. The figure skaters were supposed to have a ceremony, but they did not «It's the same here. Regulations were invented by people, and they are applied by the same or other people. Now it's hard to say something definite. Yes, according to the regulations, this is a technical defeat for Poland and Sweden, but there will be whether to strictly follow the rules is a big question,» Patsev said. The Russian team is due to play against the Poles on March 24 in Moscow in the semi-finals of the play-off tournament. In the other semi-final, the teams of Sweden and the Czech Republic will meet. The winner of the tournament will qualify for the World Championship, which will be held from November 21 to December 18 in Qatar.
