Axel May, edited by Gauthier Delomez 2:38 p.m., February 28, 2022

With the Ukrainian crisis, the international community is taking sanctions against Russia, and these could also concern the field of sport.

Fifa threatens to exclude the country from competitions.

A tense context which could affect AS Monaco, held by the oligarch Dmitry Rybolovlev.

The Ukrainian crisis invites itself into the world of sport.

The international community has been taking sanctions against Russia in recent days, and Fifa is considering sanctions against Russia regarding the next football competitions.

This international crisis can affect clubs owned by Russian interests, such as AS Monaco.

The very discreet oligarch Dmitry Rybolovlev has owned the club in the principality for ten years, and several of his compatriots manage it on a daily basis.

This is disorder in the championship of France.

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Stade de Reims delays kick-off in solidarity with Ukraine

This weekend for example, the Stade de Reims played against the Monegasque club in the French championship.

The Rémois delayed the kick-off of the match by five minutes as a sign of support for Ukraine.

"It's a bit tricky because we know Monaco's shareholder and we didn't want to make the people of Monaco or the club uncomfortable," explains the president of the Reims club, somewhat embarrassed. Jean-Pierre Caillot.

"It was we who took the initiative, at the Stade de Reims, to very symbolically delay the kick-off", continues the president on Europe 1.

ASM assures that Rybolovlev is not close to Putin

From there, could certain Ligue 1 teams decide to refuse to come and play in the principality?

The question will arise, while the leader of the ASM, Dmitry Rybolovlev, is an influential man.

The oligarch made his fortune in potash in troubled circumstances, an ore which is used in particular to make fertilizers, after the break-up of the USSR.

In Monaco, however, it is assured that the president of the club is not close to Vladimir Putin.

However, he knows Alexander Lukashenko, the President of Belarus, well.

A country that is a major potash producer.