Ministers are urging global sporting and cultural bodies to kick Russian teams out of international competitions to punish Vladimir Putin for his invasion of Ukraine.
Government officials have been holding talks with a host of governing bodies and cultural organisations to encourage them to take a stand against the military action.
UEFA has already moved the Champions League from St Petersburg to Paris and Formula 1 has cancelled the Russian Grand Prix after coming under international pressure.
The Football Association said the England team would boycott any matches against Russia for the "foreseeable future".
It said the move was to "whole-heartedly condemn the atrocities being committed by the Russian leadership" after its invasion of Ukraine.
Other countries have also announced they will not play football matches against Russia.
But there are other major events coming up later this year including the World Cup in Qatar, a tour by the Russian Ballet Company and major international chess tournaments.
Cabinet sources said the UK was taking a "hard line" but stopped short of backing an official boycott, saying Russia could be banned from individual events through lobbying instead.
They said ministers would discuss further action in coming days, including plans to ban Russian or Belarussian sports teams from UK competitions.
"No part of me thinks this will stop the bombs but it does have an impact on morale at home in Russia," one source said.
"It lets them know that through their actions in Ukraine they're an outlier and have removed themselves from the international community".
Boris Johnson has said it is "inconceivable" that sporting relations can continue with Russia as football teams across the country stood in solidarity with Ukraine.
Shadow culture secretary Lucy Powell urged ministers to push harder for an international boycott on Russian teams and organisations appearing internationally.
She said: “Putin has turned Russia into a pariah state, and sporting and cultural governing bodies should take strong action to recognise this fact, led by governments.
“Individual clubs or nations shouldn’t have to decide themselves to boycott events. The Government must act to strengthen consequences further and hit Russia and Putin where it hurts. "Ministers should hit the phones and agree a clear international boycott of sports and cultural participation. Russia needs to feel the consequences of its illegal war on Ukraine.”
Meanwhile, the International Judo Federation has suspended Putin, who is a judo black belt, as honorary president and ambassador.
