The story was first reported by Sportico Tuesday morning ... and The All England Club -- who runs the club which hosts Wimbledon -- later released a statement explaining the move.

"Given the profile of The Championships in the United Kingdom and around the world, it is our responsibility to play our part in the widespread efforts of Government, industry, sporting and creative institutions to limit Russia's global influence through the strongest means possible," TAEC announced.

"In the circumstances of such unjustified and unprecedented military aggression, it would be unacceptable for the Russian regime to derive any benefits from the involvement of Russian or Belarusian players with The Championships. It is, therefore, our intention, with deep regret, to decline entries from Russian and Belarusian players to The Championships 2022."

Of course, Russia is in the midst of a brutal invasion of Ukraine ... and has routinely, without mercy, shelled civilian populations over the 50+ day war.

Belarus -- a strong ally of Russia -- is presumably banned because of the country's involvement in the war. They've acted as a jumping-off point for Russian forces ... as Belarus shares a border with Ukraine.

Many of the West's sanctions have also been aimed at Belarus.

Wimbledon kicks off on June 27 ... and goes through July 10.

The ban is bad news for tennis star Daniil Medvedev, the current No.2 ranked men's tennis player in the world, who won't be allowed to compete.

One of Medvedev's contemporaries, Andrey Rublev, who's also from Russia, will be banned from competing at Wimbledon as well.

You'll recall, Rublev famously wrote, "No More War Please," after advancing to the Final at the Dubai Championships in February.