The premier class final on May 28 in St. Petersburg had long since become a political issue. The topic contains a lot of explosive material - and could become an example for the future handling of sport with Russia. The conflict has top priority at headquarters in Nyon - the pressure on UEFA is increasing. And not just on them. "It is currently about securing world peace".

The German Football Association is also on alert. Because the Russian state-owned company Gazprom is one of the major sponsors of UEFA, which will also present the next European Championship in this country. "It's a very delicate situation that can change hourly and of course we all keep an eye on it," said DFB interim president Rainer Koch of "Sportschau".

Will he influence UEFA regarding sponsorship? "At the moment it is about securing world peace and is therefore much more important than football. UEFA will communicate any consequences for football if necessary," said Koch, who also sits on the UEFA Executive Committee, the most powerful body in European football. Waiting is the order of the day.

Russia's impact on the world of professional sports is huge. The proximity to the top associations is extreme, the economic dependency enormous - that's exactly why the call for harsh consequences was loud on Tuesday.

"For sanctions against Russia to be effective, they must hurt Russia above all," said Philipp Hartewig, sports policy spokesman for the FDP, the "SID". Using football as an example, he "also clearly" sees UEFA and its President Aleksander Ceferin as "responsible".

Sabine Poschmann, sports policy spokeswoman for the SPD, also considers a Champions League final to be "unthinkable. UEFA is called upon to move the final to another country". If Russia "willfully breaks international law," Hartewig added, "Russia will have to live with the consequences."

Discussions are also in full swing abroad. In Great Britain, for example, Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat spoke of a "shameful decision with regard to the premier class final. UEFA should not offer protection to a violent dictatorship," he wrote on Twitter.

FC Schalke 04 speak up A look back shows that short-term shifts are quite possible. Last year, the final was moved from Istanbul to Porto, and in 2020 UEFA organized a final tournament in Lisbon due to the corona pandemic. On Tuesday, UEFA held renewed talks about how to proceed.

Not only UEFA has maintained a lucrative partnership with Gazprom for years. The energy giant has long been one of the top sponsors in many sports - in football, for example, for the Champions League, last year's European Championships or the Nations League. In addition, Alexander Dyukov, the CEO of the subsidiary Gazprom Neft, sits on the UEFA Executive Committee.

The controversial Gazprom sponsorship at Schalke 04 is suddenly back in focus in view of the developments in eastern Ukraine. The second division club is reviewing the partnership with its long-standing main sponsor.

The association said on Tuesday that they would “observe further developments, evaluate them and urgently appeal for peace to protect the people affected by the crisis”.

With the escalation in eastern Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin has once again taken military action in connection with the Olympic Games. During the summer games in Beijing in 2008, he had already intervened in the Georgian conflict (2008) by force of arms. Six and a half years later, accompanied by a great international outcry, he annexed Crimea (2014).