UEFA awarded Latvia a technical defeat of 0:3 for refusing to play against Belarus. This is a historic precedent. UEFA ruled that Latvia was technically defeated because it refused to play against Belarus in the qualifiers for Euro 2027. The youth team of the Baltic country refused to play for political reasons. UEFA did not accept this argument and punished Latvia accordingly. Such a precedent in men’s football since 2022 has never happened before. Belarus’ team finished in first place in the qualifiers, without playing any matches at all. Previously, UEFA had already awarded defeats to Lithuania and Estonia for the same reason: their women’s teams refused to play against Belarusian teams.