Russian side Spartak Moscow are set to be removed from the Europa League last 16 ties following their country’s invasion of Ukraine last week.
The generally reliable German outlet Bild.de claim that their German opponents, RB Leipzig, will advance to the quarter-finals of the competition without playing a game.
The pair of clubs were drawn together on Friday, and were due to face off on the 10th and 17th March.
However, this no longer seems to be the case, with UEFA expected to expel the Russian side from the competition as a sanction against the invasion made by Vladimir Putin.
According to Bild, Spartak has been excluded from Europa League, leaving the way to Leipzig to Quarters
— Tancredi Palmeri (@tancredipalmeri) February 28, 2022
Speaking over the weekend, RB Leipzig head of football Oliver Mintzlaff told the media:
‘We continue to be in close contact with the associations and have complete confidence in Uefa and their decision. We assume that the games will be cancelled.’
What else has happened?
The club had already removed the sponsor from their shirts, but have now ended the connection entirely.
In a statement, they told the fans:
‘The FC Schalke 04 managing board and supervisory board have come to the agreement to end the club’s partnership with GAZPROM prematurely. The club are currently in discussions with representatives of the current sponsor and further information will be released at a later date.’
‘This decision does not affect the club’s financial capabilities. The club’s leadership are confident to be able to announce a new partner in the near future.’
The partnership between #S04 and #GAZPROM will be ended early.
Full details ⤵️
— FC Schalke 04 (@s04_en) February 28, 2022
