Why is a company tied to Russia’s war effort getting Champions League exposure?

Gazprom, a company with strong ties to Russia’s war effort in Ukraine, is enjoying significant exposure during this season’s Champions League despite UEFA ending its sponsorship agreement with the energy corporation shortly after Russia’s invasion began in February 2022.

Reigning European champions Manchester City hosted Crvena Zvezda – commonly known as Red Star Belgrade in the English-speaking world – on Tuesday. The Serbian club has worn Gazprom’s logo on its jerseys since 2010 and proudly maintains a close relationship with the state-owned Russian company.

“(It’s) an arm of the Russian state,” Polina Ivanova, a correspondent covering Russia, Ukraine, and Central Asia for the Financial Times, told theScore about Gazprom. “It’s fully Kremlin controlled.”

When I asked UEFA for comment on Gazprom’s presence at its flagship club competition, the governing body replied: “UEFA decided to terminate its own partnership with Gazprom. Club

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