Vitaly Mutko temporarily stepped down as RFU president last December.GETTY IMAGES
Russian Deputy PM Vitaly Mutko "has fully returned" to the position of president of the Russian Football Union, "having temporarily stepped down last December to fight his lifetime ban from the Olympic Games," according to Daniel Etchells of INSIDE THE GAMES. RFU VP Sergei Anokhin said in June that Mutko "will still continue in his role as RFU head" despite rumors that he was "set to stand down" after he told an RFU conference that delegates may not see him for "three or four months." Mutko is now listed under the RFU website's management section as president. Earlier this year, Russian President Vladimir Putin defended Mutko and claimed it would be "impossible" to fire him given the int'l criticism "after his role in the country's doping scandal." Mutko, a "long-term ally of Putin from their shared past" in St. Petersburg city politics, has been heavily criticized "both inside and outside of Russia" for his performance as sports minister. This "included him being removed from the FIFA Council and being given a lifetime ban" by the IOC (INSIDE THE GAMES, 10/16).
