Belarus

Belarus – a new stadium, old problems

Belarus belongs to the group of European football federations whose sporting situation is heavily complicated by politics. In the UEFA country ranking, it currently sits around the middle of the fourth ten, with Lithuania, Andorra, Latvia and Kazakhstan among its closest rivals. The country's position is weaker than during the best years of BATE Borisov, when Belarusian clubs regularly competed in the group stage of the Champions League.

Today, Belarus has a modern national stadium and several clubs with European experience, but at the same time it cannot fully use its own infrastructure in official UEFA competitions. This is a consequence of the involvement of the Belarusian authorities in Russia's aggression against Ukraine and the resulting decisions by European football's governing body.

The new national stadium in Minsk

In June 2025, the new National Stadium was opened in Minsk. It is the largest and most modern football venue in the country, and its construction was carried out with Chinese support. The stadium was designed as the home of the Belarus national team and a venue for the country's most important matches.

The arena meets the requirements of the highest UEFA category, meaning that in theory it can host European and World Cup matches, Champions League and Europa League fixtures, as well as the UEFA Super Cup. It has a natural grass pitch, a heating system and modern facilities for players and spectators.

The opening of the stadium also had a political and image-building dimension. The Belarusian authorities presented the venue as a symbol of the development of sports infrastructure and cooperation with China. The first matches were played as friendlies, and the stadium was intended to become the new centre of Belarusian football.

This created a unique paradox. Belarus built a stadium that meets UEFA requirements, but its clubs and national team cannot play official home matches there. In practice, the new arena cannot perform its most important function in European football.

Neutral venues and the war in Ukraine

In March 2022, UEFA decided that Belarusian clubs and the national team must play their home matches at neutral venues. Matches cannot be held on Belarusian territory, while games in which Belarus is formally the home side are played without spectators.

The decision followed Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Belarus allowed Russian forces to use its territory and military infrastructure, leading UEFA to conclude that the security situation did not permit international matches to be staged in the country.

Belarusian teams consequently lost the basic advantage of playing at home. They cannot play in front of their own supporters, use familiar pitches or host matches in the cities with which they are associated. A neutral stadium is merely the formal venue for a match, rather than a genuine home ground.

UEFA has also decided that teams from Belarus and Ukraine cannot be drawn against each other in European competitions. The restriction is intended to prevent potential political and security problems.

BATE Borisov – the golden era

The most successful club in Belarusian football history is BATE Borisov. The team from a relatively small city dominated the domestic league for many years and became the first Belarusian club to reach the Champions League group stage.

BATE competed in Europe's elite competition on several occasions, facing clubs including Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Valencia, Juventus and Shakhtar Donetsk. The club was capable of taking points from opponents with budgets many times larger than its own, and its Champions League campaigns were among the most significant achievements of football in the post-Soviet states.

BATE never won a European trophy, but for a long time it was Belarus's most consistent representative in European competition. The club's success was built on stable management, good youth development and an ability to identify promising players.

The scale of the city BATE represents is particularly noteworthy. Borisov is not a major European metropolis, yet its club competed against some of the continent's biggest teams for many seasons. BATE became a symbol of how even a relatively small centre can build a team capable of playing in the Champions League.

Dynamo Minsk and Neman Grodno

Dynamo Minsk is one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Belarus. During the Soviet era, it won the Soviet championship, becoming the only Belarusian club to achieve that feat.

Dynamo also reached the advanced rounds of the European Cup and Cup Winners' Cup. Today, it remains one of Belarus's most important sources of UEFA points, and its European record is stronger than that of most domestic rivals.

Neman Grodno has attempted in recent years to take over part of the role previously played by BATE. The club regularly participates in European qualifying rounds and has collected points in the Conference League. Grodno is located relatively close to the borders with Poland and Lithuania, making it one of the westernmost centres of Belarusian football.

Torpedo, Shakhtyor and the others

Torpedo-BelAZ Zhodino represents a city known for its automotive industry. The club regularly competes for places in European competitions and has collected valuable points in qualifying rounds in several seasons.

Shakhtyor Soligorsk was one of BATE's main domestic rivals for a period of time. It won the Belarusian championship and appeared in European qualifying rounds, but never achieved the same consistency as the country's former dominant force.

Other clubs to appear in European competitions include Dinamo Brest, Gomel and Isloch Minsk. Their contribution to the coefficient is smaller, but every progression to another round is important for a federation that needs several active representatives.

During the period under analysis, Dynamo Minsk, Neman Grodno, BATE and Torpedo-BelAZ were the highest-ranked Belarusian clubs. None of them, however, came close to BATE's achievements during its period of greatest dominance.

Belarus in the UEFA ranking

Belarus sits around 40th place in the UEFA country ranking. Its results remain inconsistent, with the coefficient depending heavily on whether Dynamo Minsk, Neman or Torpedo-BelAZ can progress through several qualifying rounds.

The biggest problem is not purely sporting. Clubs must also organise matches outside the country, often without spectators, which increases costs and limits revenue. The absence of home fixtures also reduces the appeal of matches for supporters and deprives teams of an important element of home advantage.

Belarus therefore has modern infrastructure but cannot fully use it. The new National Stadium in Minsk is ready to host matches at the highest level, yet UEFA's decisions related to the war in Ukraine mean that official European matches involving Belarusian teams continue to be played at neutral venues.

Belarusian football has a rich history, including Dynamo Minsk's Soviet championship and BATE's European campaigns. The future of its clubs, however, depends not only on sporting results but also on the political situation. As long as Belarus continues to be regarded as a state involved in Russia's aggression against Ukraine, the new national stadium will remain above all a symbol of untapped potential.