At a bustling Moscow bar, soccer fans carrying purple, white and blue are glued to the TV screens as groups line up for the nationwide anthems forward of a World Cup match.
But this time the colors are to not characterize the Russian flag.
The nation that in 2018 hosted the World Cup has this 12 months been barred by FIFA from worldwide soccer competitions in response to Moscow sending troops into Ukraine.
And with the Russian staff absent from the championship hosted by Qatar, its fans have as an alternative come to help Moscow’s ally Serbia.
“We have always supported them and we will continue to support them: I think that the Serbs are a brother people,” Kirill Gnevuchev, a supervisor for a refrigeration gear firm, instructed AFP at a bar in central Moscow.
Gnevuchev had come along with his associates on Thursday to cheer on Serbia’s staff — nicknamed the “Orlovi” (the Eagles) — in their opening group stage match in opposition to Brazil, which Serbia misplaced 2-0.
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Their subsequent match might be in opposition to Cameroon on Monday.
While Serbia’s European neighbours have pummelled Russia with sanctions over the Ukraine offensive, Belgrade’s traditionally shut ties with Moscow have remained largely unscathed.
And in this Moscow bar, unusually busy on a weekday, the battle in Ukraine appears distant.
Young girls cheer with a Serbian flag painted on their cheek, different fans focus on the match sipping on a chilly pint whereas two bookmakers cross by means of the tables gathering bets.
“I bet on Brazil but I support Serbia,” Roman Marshak, a 34-year-old skilled poker participant, instructed AFP with a smile.
“If Brazil wins, I win money. If Serbia wins, I’ll just be happy!”
Meanwhile bartender Roman Yanchinsky is glad to have such a crowd on a Thursday.
“It’s thanks to Serbia that we have a full house today,”
the 41-year-old mentioned.
‘Same colours, same faith’
According to a ballot performed mid-November by Russian sports activities information web site Championat, Serbia is the favorite staff amongst Russian supporters throughout the World Cup.
And in the absence of the Russian staff, Russian sports activities commentators as an alternative focus on the efficiency of Serbia’s strikers Dusan Vlahovic and Aleksandar Mitrovic.
“Good luck at the World Cup! We believe in your success, brothers!” the Russian nationwide staff mentioned on its social media in a message in Serbian.
The refrain of supporters was joined by Rossotrudnichestvo, a Russian authorities company for cultural change, which mentioned in a press release: “Same colours, same faith. Go ours! Go Serbs!”
But regardless of the enthusiasm displayed for Serbia, the absence of Russia’s staff is a reminder of how remoted the nation has develop into, simply 4 years after welcoming soccer fans from throughout the globe as World Cup hosts.
Marshak regrets not having the ability to journey simply overseas after most European international locations closed their airspace to Russian planes and plenty of airways halted flights to Russia and questions the way forward for Russian soccer after an exodus of overseas gamers.
“Maybe it will benefit young Russian talent. But no one in Europe will want to recruit them in this context,”
he mentioned.
‘We will come back’
Treated as a pariah on the diplomatic and sporting area, Russians can nevertheless rely on the solidarity of Serbia.
Serbian soccer champions Red Star Belgrade not too long ago visited Russia the place on November 22 they performed a pleasant in opposition to Saint Petersburg’s Zenit, shedding 3-1.
On the day of the match, Russian fans unfurled a Serbian flag linked to a Russian one — a number of hundred metres lengthy — carrying it by means of the streets of Russia’s second largest metropolis.
Still, in a rustic the place soccer is one among the hottest sports activities, Russia’s absence from the World Cup is painful.
“Sport should not suffer the consequences of politics,” Gleb, an 18-year-old humanities scholar, instructed AFP at the bar.
Marshak compares Russia’s scenario to that of Yugoslavia, which was excluded from the Euro in 1992 and the World Cup in 1994 as a consequence of battle in the Balkans however was later reinstated.
“We will come back too,” Marshak mentioned.
“But as long as the current political situation persists, nothing will change. Today, sports and politics cannot be separated.”
© Agence France-Presse