Washington Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin is now reportedly facing renewed scrutiny after appearing in a campaign advertisement for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ruling United Russia party just days before the country’s parliamentary elections.
The NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer was featured in campaign material published by Russian business newspaper Vedomosti, standing alongside some of the Kremlin’s most recognizable figures, including Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Margarita Simonyan, the editor-in-chief of the state-controlled propaganda outlet RT. Ovechkin later appeared in a campaign video alongside Lavrov that quickly went viral online, in which Lavrov delivered a pointed message warning that those who come at Russia aggressively should expect no mercy, while those who deal with the country honestly would find agreement.
The ad campaign, which began airing on Russian television around September 10, comes as Russia heads toward State Duma elections and lands right around the time Ovechkin flew back to the United States to begin preparations for his 22nd NHL season.
This isn’t the first time Ovechkin has publicly aligned himself with Putin. Back in 2017, the hockey star launched a movement called Putin Team, aimed at rallying support for the Russian leader ahead of the 2018 presidential election, describing it as a way to unite people proud of their country.
Ovechkin’s relationship with Putin drew far more scrutiny following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Asked directly about the war at the time, Ovechkin stopped short of condemning Putin, instead saying he hoped the conflict would end and that people could live in a good world, while still referring to Putin as his president. He has since maintained that he considers himself an athlete, not a political figure, and has called for peace regardless of which side is involved in a conflict.
Ovechkin’s latest appearance places his long-standing political ties back in the international spotlight, reigniting debate over whether athletes with prominent platforms should be lending their image to state-backed political campaigns, particularly one tied to a government still waging war in Ukraine. Neither the NHL nor the Washington Capitals organization has issued a response to Ovechkin’s latest appearance in the Kremlin-aligned ad.
