Australian foreign minister Julie Bishop has threatened a Socceroos boycott of the World Cup in Russia after two Moscow diplomats were expelled from Canberra on Tuesday.
The two Russian government officials were believed to be undeclared spies, and have been sent back to their country in response to the nerve agent attack in the UK.
Bishop explained the escalating tensions with World Cup host Russia could mean the green-and-gold's participation at football's showpiece event is in jeopardy.
"In relation to sanctions, Australia already has a range of autonomous sanctions against Russia, in particular those that were imposed in the aftermath of the illegal annexation of Crimea, and those sanctions have been reviewed and updated over time, so we have sanctions against a number of individuals and a number of Russian entities," Bishop said on Tuesday.