Russia and Belarus will also not get to play in an IIHF tournament next season

This also means that Russia will not be one of the teams at the 2026 IIHF World Championship in Switzerland. The council "believes it is not yet safe to reintegrate the Russian and Belarusian National and Club Teams [...]" and cites safety concerns as the main reason for upholding the status quo.

The IIHF council will reevaluate the situation at their meeting ahead of the IIHF Annual Congress in May 2026 and determine whether they will reintegrate the two countries into the 2026-27 schedule.