In World Cup Politics, It’s Moscow 1, London 0

On May 19, Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich missed the Football Association final at London’s Wembley Stadium, where his team, Chelsea, beat Manchester United. British officials hadn’t renewed Abramovich’s visa—making him pay the price for a deep freeze in relations with the Kremlin after the poisoning of a former Russian spy and his daughter in England. Prime Minister Theresa May had already announced that no ministers or diplomats would attend the soccer World Cup starting in Moscow in mid-June, and taking aim at the Russian most famously linked with football was a logical next step.

When Russia won its bid to host the planet’s most watched sporting event eight years ago, Vladimir Putin made clear he intended the tournament to showcase his country at its best. But today he’s getting global attention for meddling in U.S. elections, backing the brutal Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad, and waging a not-so covert war in eastern Ukraine. In March, the U.S. and European Union expelled more than 100 diplomats over the poisoning of ex-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter. Washington the next month slapped new sanctions on Russian oligarchs, some of whom have built or own infrastructure for World Cup matches.