Diplomatic row overshadows Spain World Cup qualifier against Kosovo

Spain’s World Cup qualifier against Kosovo today is more than a simple game of football, with the meeting in Seville also at the centre of a diplomatic row.

The controversy stems from the description of Kosovo as a “territory” by the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) when it published Spain’s opening World Cup qualifying fixtures in a group also containing Sweden, Greece and Georgia.

The description was not appreciated in Kosovo, the former Serbian province of 1.8 million people which declared its independence in 2008.

In response, the Football Federation of Kosovo (FFK), said in a statement that “Kosovo is an independent state” and threatened not to play the match if it was not allowed to use its national anthem and flag.

“We were prepared not to go to Spain due to the political context of this decision,” FFK secretary general Eroll Salihu told AFP.

Kosovo were granted full membership of UEFA and Fifa in 2016 and first appeared in competitive action in qualifying for the 2018 World Cup.

Most western powers recognise Kosovo’s statehood but Serbia and its leading international allies China and Russia do not.

Nor does Spain, or Greece, another of their opponents on the field in the campaign to qualify for Qatar 2022.

Spain and Greece, along with Slovakia, Romania and Cyprus, are the five member states of the European Union who were last week urged to recognise Kosovo by the European Parliament.

“The staging of the match between the teams from these two federations does not under any circumstances change Spain’s position not to acknowledge Kosovo as a state,” Spanish diplomatic sources told AFP.

On Wednesday, Spain will “adjust to the rules put in place by Fifa and UEFA for these matches”, diplomatic sources and sources from the Spanish Federation told AFP.

“We have received guarantees from UEFA and Fifa that the protocol (covering international matches) will be respected,” said Salihu, meaning Kosovo will be able to play its anthem and fly its flag at La Cartuja.

That should avoid any controversy come the game itself, as Kosovo — ranked 117th in the world — look to cause a major shock against the 2010 world champions.

“Spain are one of the best teams in the world but we have a young team that fears nobody,” added Salihu.