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The Soviet Union national football team is the national football team who represented the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1992.
The Uzbekistan national football team represents Uzbekistan in international football and is controlled by the Uzbekistan Football Association, the governing body for football in Uzbekistan.
The Kyrgyzstan national football team, officially recognised by FIFA and AFC as Kyrgyz Republic, represents Kyrgyzstan in international football and is controlled by the Kyrgyz Football Union, a member of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and Central Asian Football Association.
Rugby union in Russia is a moderately popular sport. Russia was in 2011 ranked 20th worldwide by the World Rugby, having over three hundred clubs and close to 22,000 players nationally. Russian Rugby Championship is the top-level professional competition held in Russia. Krasnoyarsk, in the middle of Siberia, is traditionally the heartland of Russian rugby.
Rugby union in Georgia is a popular team sport. Rugby union is considered one of the most popular sports in Georgia.
Rugby union in Armenia is a growing sport. The national team is currently unranked in the world rankings, which records only the top ninety-six countries. The governing body for Armenia is the Rugby Federation of Armenia, headquartered in Yerevan.
The USSR national rugby union team represented the Soviet Union in rugby union until the early 1990s.
Rugby union in Azerbaijan is a growing sport. They are currently unranked in the International Rugby Board's world rankings, which ranks only the top ninety-five countries. The governing body for Azerbaijan is Azerbaycan Reqbi Federasiyasl.
Rugby union in Moldova is a popular sport. The governing body in Moldova is the Moldovan Rugby Federation.
Rugby union in Latvia is a minor but growing sport. During the pre-independence period, Latvia was not a centre for the game but nonetheless Latvia managed to qualify for the 1993 Rugby World Cup Sevens - which may be seen as the highest point it has yet reached.
Rugby union in Ukraine is a minor but growing sport, with a history dating back over six decades.
Rugby union in Kazakhstan is a fairly popular sport. As of May 2018, they are ranked 61st by World Rugby, and as of June 2009, they had 2335 registered players and twenty clubs.
Rugby union in Kyrgyzstan is a minor but growing sport.
Rugby union in Uzbekistan is a minor but growing sport.
Rugby union in Estonia is a minor but growing sport.
Rugby union in the Soviet Union was a moderately popular sport. It was most popular in the Georgian SSR; parts of the Russian SFSR such as Moscow and certain regions in Siberia like Krasnoyarsk; and Alma-Ata, the capital of the Kazakh SSR. Rugby enjoyed a more limited popularity in the Ukrainian SSR, Minsk in the Byelorussian SSR and parts of the RSFSR such as Leningrad and areas in Southern Russia, including Krasnodar. Rugby gained a significant following due to the vast size of the Soviet Union, but was never a major sport; despite many attempts to develop the sport, which Soviet citizens came to nickname the "leather melon" due to the shape of the ball. Still, an early championship in 1960 gives an idea of the sheer scale of Soviet rugby: one hundred teams from over thirty cities took part.
Rugby union in Belarus is a minor sport. They are currently affiliated to FIRA-AER.
Rugby union in Tajikistan is a minor but growing sport.
Football is the most popular sport in Turkmenistan, a country that gained independence in 1991. The national association regularly takes part in competitions organised by FIFA and the AFC at senior and youth level. Valeri Nepomniachi is probably the most famous name in Turkmen football. He was the coach who led Cameroon to the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy. The Africans surprised many with their 1–0 win over defending champions Argentina in the opening match and finally bowed out in the quarter-finals. There are 40 clubs, 820 players, and 30 referees in the country. The largest stadium by capacity in Turkmenistan is the 45,000-capacity Saparmurat Turkmenbashy Olympic Stadium.
Rovshen Abdurahmanovich Muhadov, is a Turkmen football coach and former player who played as a forward and had coach of the Turkmen national team. He is one of the honored coaches of Turkmenistan. He is a master of Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan in 1994.
References
- ↑ Rugby union in Russia and USSR (in Russian)
