The journalist who has reported on Russian doping won't be allowed at the World Cup.

German broadcasting network ARD says Russia has denied journalist Hajo Seppelt entry into the country ahead of the 2018 World Cup. Seppelt is one of the top journalists who uncovered and exposed systemic doping and cover-ups in Russia.

ARD says that the visa for Seppelt was declared invalid and called the decision "unprecedented."

Seppelt and ARD have been working with whistleblowers in recent years to detail the lengths that countries like Russia would go for athletes in sports like track and field to win at global championships. In one of the early films, Russian federation officials encouraged athletes to cheat and some anti-doping officials were paid off to cover up positive tests by Russian stars.

In 2015, Russia's athletics federation previously filed two lawsuits against German TV documentaries and claimed their "honor and dignity had been damaged by the films. The cases were thrown out by a Russian court.

The FIFA World Cup starts on June 14 when Russia faces Saudi Arabia.