A strong gesture – but part of the picture is that Manchester City is owned by influential sheikhs from the United Arab Emirates. A state that in turn abstained from voting in the UN Security Council when it came to condemning the Russian invasion. When there is war, one must always look behind the embassies.

What is certain is that some things in international sports are in flux right now. The Polish national team announced on Saturday that it would not play Russia in the World Cup qualifying playoff game. The other two possible opponents, Sweden and the Czech Republic, also declared their refusal. Robert Lewandowski, world footballer, Bayern striker, captain of the Polish selection and not normally known for making political statements, called it the “right decision.” He ran in the game against Frankfurt with the Ukrainian flag on his arm. The statements by the three countries put pressure on Fifa, world soccer’s governing body, which so far is the only major sports federation to have drawn absolutely no conclusions at all from the Russian invasion. President Infantino must make a decision: Either kick out Poland, Sweden and the Czech Republic – or Russia.

Hard to imagine Russian and Ukrainian athletes clashing at the Paralympics

Which brings us to another topic. The complete exclusion of Russia from world sports is the elephant in the room, so far only events have been withdrawn from the state, the Champions League final, for example, also the Formula 1 race. The IOC recommended to cancel all competitions in Russia and Belarus. But putting Russia out the door is something no one has done yet. The focus is therefore on Fifa – and also on the IPC, the International Paralympic Committee. The Paralympics are to be held in Beijing from March 4. It’s hard to imagine how Russian athletes will meet Ukrainian athletes there.

Roman Abramovich, oligarch and owner of Chelsea FC, drew his own kind of consequence on Saturday. He handed over the “administration” of the club to trustees of a club-owned foundation. However, no one had asked him to withdraw from the operational business – instead, there was talk of seizing his properties, including the club.

As I said, it is necessary, especially in these times, with some messages to look twice. So of course it’s nice when clubs like Eintracht Frankfurt take a clear stand and send out “Stop it, Putin!” to the world. It’s not much. But at least it’s something.