AvtoVAZ is a Russian automobile manufacturing company owned by the state. It was formerly named as VAZ, an acronym for Volga Automotive Plant in Russian. AvtoVAZ is best known for its flagship series of Lada vehicles. In the Soviet Union, its products used various names, including Zhiguli, Oka, and Sputnik, which were phased out in the 1990s and replaced by Lada for the Russian market. From December 2019 to August 2020, AvtoVAZ sold Niva cars with Chevrolet branding.
The Union of European Football Associations is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach football in Europe and the transcontinental countries of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Kazakhstan, as well as some Asian countries such as Israel, Cyprus and Armenia. UEFA consists of 55 national association members. Since 2022, due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, FIFA and UEFA suspended all Russian national teams and clubs from any FIFA and UEFA competitions.
The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional intergovernmental organization in Eurasia. It was formed following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. It covers an area of 20,368,759 km2 (7,864,422 sq mi) and has an estimated population of 239,796,010. The CIS encourages cooperation in economic, political, and military affairs and has certain powers relating to the coordination of trade, finance, lawmaking, and security, including cross-border crime prevention.
Lev Ivanovich Yashin was a Soviet professional footballer, regarded by many as the greatest goalkeeper in the history of the sport. He was known for his athleticism, positioning, imposing presence in goal, and acrobatic reflex saves. He was also deputy chairman of the Football Federation of the Soviet Union.
The Ice Hockey World Championships are an annual international men's ice hockey tournament organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). First officially held at the 1920 Summer Olympics. The IIHF was created in 1908 while the European Championships, the precursor to the World Championships, were first held in 1910. The tournament held at the 1920 Summer Olympics is recognized as the first Ice Hockey World Championship. From 1920 to 1968, the Olympic hockey tournament was also considered the World Championship for that year.
Formula Two is a type of open-wheel formula racing category first codified in 1948. It was replaced in 1985 by Formula 3000, but revived by the FIA from 2009–2012 in the form of the FIA Formula Two Championship. The name returned again in 2017 when the former GP2 Series became known as the FIA Formula 2 Championship.
FC Spartak Moscow is a Russian professional football club based in Moscow. Having won 12 Soviet championships and a record 10 Russian championships, it is the country's most successful club. They have also won a record 10 Soviet Cups, 4 Russian Cups and one Russian Super Cup. Spartak have also reached the semi-finals of all three European club competitions.
Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours is a 4.411 km (2.741 mi) motor racing circuit located in central France, near the towns of Magny-Cours and Nevers, some 250 km (160 mi) from Paris and 240 km (150 mi) from Lyon.
CSKA Moscow is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. It was created in 1911 in the Russian Empire on base of OLLS. Later, during the Soviet era, it was the central part of the Armed Forces sports society, which in turn was associated with the Soviet Army; because of this, it was popularly referred to in the West as "Red Army" or "the Red Army team". The historical CSKA sport club is still a department of the Russian Defense Ministry.
The Soviet Union national football team was the national football team of the Soviet Union from 1922-1992.
FC Zorya Luhansk is a Ukrainian football team. Zorya Luhansk is based in the city of Luhansk, Ukraine. However, because of the Russo-Ukrainian War, the team plays its games at Slavutych-Arena in Zaporizhzhia.
Maria Ivanovna Gusakova was a Soviet cross-country skier who competed from the late 1950s to the early 1960s for VSS Spartak. She won a complete set of Winter Olympic medals with a gold in the 10 km (1960), a silver in the 3 × 5 km relay (1960), and a bronze in the 10 km (1964). Gusakova also earned a complete set of medals at the 1962 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships with a gold in the 3 × 5 km relay, a silver in the 10 km, and a bronze in the 5 km. Her husband Nikolay Gusakov also competed at the 1960 Winter Olympics and claimed bronze in Nordic combined event.
Circuit Paul Armagnac, also known as Circuit de Nogaro, is a motorsport race track located in the commune of Nogaro in the Gers department in southwestern France. The track is named in honor of Nogaro-born racing driver Paul Armagnac, who died in an accident during practice for the 1962 1000 km de Paris at the Montlhéry circuit.
The most popular sport in Russia is soccer. According to Yandex search analysis results rating of the most popular sports among Russians: "Football topped the list of the most popular sports in Russia" with 5 to 10 million requests. Ice hockey came in second with handball, basketball, futsal, boxing, auto racing, volleyball, athletics, tennis, and chess rounding out the top ten rankings. Other popular sports include bandy, biathlon, figure skating, weightlifting, gymnastics, wrestling, martial arts, rugby union, and skiing.
The Russian Grand Prix was an annual motor racing event held at Sochi Autodrom – a permanent circuit built around the Olympic Park in Sochi – as part of the Formula One World Championship.
Daniil Vyacheslavovich Kvyat is a Russian professional racing driver racing for Prema Racing in the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship. Kvyat competed in Formula One between 2014–2017 and 2019–2020. He became the second Formula One driver from Russia and is the most successful of the four Russian drivers to date, with three podiums.
The Sochi Autodrom, previously known as the Sochi International Street Circuit and the Sochi Olympic Park Circuit, is a 5.848 km (3.634 mi) permanent race track in the settlement of Sirius next to the Black Sea resort city of Sochi in Krasnodar Krai, Russia.
Moscow Raceway is an FIA-approved motor racing venue in the Volokolamsky District, Moscow Oblast, Russia. It is located near the villages of Sheludkovo and Fedyukovo, about 97 km (60 mi) west from Moscow.
Lance Strulovitch, better known as Lance Stroll, is a Canadian and Belgian racing driver competing under the Canadian flag in Formula One. He has driven for Aston Martin since 2021, having previously driven for Williams and Racing Point. He was Italian F4 champion in 2014, Toyota Racing Series champion in 2015, and 2016 FIA European Formula 3 champion. He was part of the Ferrari Driver Academy from 2010 to 2015. He achieved his first podium finish, a 3rd place, at the 2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, becoming the second-youngest driver to finish an F1 race on the podium and the youngest to do so during his rookie season. At the 2020 Turkish Grand Prix, Stroll took his first pole position in Formula One. Stroll also competed in endurance racing, taking part in the 24 Hours of Daytona in 2016 and 2018.
The FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship is an international volleyball competition contested by the senior women's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB), the sport's global governing body. The initial gap between championships was variable, but since 1970 they have been awarded every four years. The tournament will be held biannually starting in 2025.
Soviet Union 
Toomas Napa