Russian football club owner Yevgeny Savin faces administrative charge for ‘discrediting’ Russian army

Russia’s Tver District Court has registered an administrative case for “discreditation” of the Russian army against blogger, former footballer, and president of the KraSava football club Yevgeny Savin.

It is not clear what Savin is accused of. The man is facing a fine of between 30,000 and 50,000 rubles (€400-670).

“A rare case when I am proud of myself,” Savin commented on the administrative case on his Instagram account.

Savin is the president of the KraSava football club and opposes the Ukraine war. In April 2022, he published an interview with Ukrainian footballers on his YouTube channel. The players said in the video how the Russian invasion affected their lives.

The Zorky stadium administration in the Moscow region later terminated its rental agreement with the club. The news then emerged that Savin left Russia and re-registered the club in Cyprus.

In August 2022, member of the Russian parliament Roman Teryushkov urged the police to check whether “some materials” by Savin are legal. The Interior Ministry replied that they did find “signs of crimes” that fall under the articles about the “discreditation” of the army and “fakes” about the military. The police referred the materials to the Investigative Committee which was then expected to decide whether to open a criminal case.