Malta’s main sporting fan group has called on the Malta Football Association to advise UEFA that it will not accept the Russia under 21 national team in the country next month.

Malta’s U-21 national team is due to face Russia on 25 March in a UEFA U21 Championship qualification match.

In a statement on Facebook, the South End Core said that “in the light of the brutal invasion that Russia has ordered and is currently on going on a sovereign independent country, we the fans ask the Malta Football Association to advise UEFA that as an association they will not be accepting the Russian under 21 national team in our country in March.”

“Football is about love for the game and respect towards each other. There is no place for war,” the South End Core said.

Malta’s women’s national team is also due to face their Russian counterparts in a World Cup qualifier on 12 April.

Malta on Sunday shut its airspace to Russian airlines, following in the steps of many other European countries in response to Russia's war on Ukraine.

Sporting events have been one of the many things which Russia have been excluded from in recent days owing to its invasion of Ukraine.

Both Poland and Sweden’s footballing bodies have said that they will not play against Russia in the World Cup Play-offs scheduled for next month, while two major sporting events scheduled to take place in Russia – the UEFA Champions League Final and the F1 Sochi Grand Prix – have been moved or cancelled.