The Romanian Football Federation decided not to send its under-15 national team to the FIFA U15 World Cup & Festival in Azerbaijan after Russia was accepted back into the competition.
The tournament invited all 211 FIFA member associations. Some boycotted it because Russia was readmitted. Spain’s under-15 side, La Rojita, won the trophy from the 189 associations that remained.
FRF gave three reasons for staying away. The event was not on the official competition calendar. The format was an unusual 7+1 game, with squads limited to 14 players and only four members of the technical staff. Federation president Răzvan Burleanu also took a deliberate protest stance toward FIFA president Gianni Infantino, having repeatedly expressed reservations about Infantino’s actions.
Romania was not alone. Other strong under-15 teams that boycotted were Ukraine, Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Serbia, Slovenia, Finland, Iceland, Armenia, the Faroe Islands, Liechtenstein, San Marino and the United States.
The final was played at Crystal Hall in Baku. Spain beat the Czech Republic with goals from Tiago Polo in the 13th minute, Bruno Fernandez in the 24th and Adrian Bielsa in the 31st. According to as.com, the Czech starting side was Jerabek, Vorlicek, Tichy, Ceska, Stejskal, Kyklhorn, Zidlik and Tretina, while Spain began with Leo Rico, Mosquera, Castellanos, Barbany, Alberto Ruiz, Tiago Polo, Ricardo Perez and Divine.
With the under-15 title, Spain now holds a broad set of international crowns: the senior men’s and women’s World Cups, the reigning men’s European Championship, the women’s Nations League, the men’s and women’s European under-19 titles, and the women’s under-20 World Cup.