The collapse of the Soviet Union occurred in December 26th 1991, in the world of soccer however the date is January 23rd 2016. After the union between the Soviet states dissolved there was an attempt to continue the legacy with soccer. In 1993 the CIS Cup was inaugurated, the Commonwealth of Independent States Cup. The participants were the champions of all former Soviet republics plus Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
The regional tournament, recognized by FIFA, drew significant interest by both the fans and the clubs, at least in the beginning. As the years went by the Russian and Ukrainian clubs, who carried the competition in terms of revenue and attendance, began to lose interest due to the condition of the artificial turf in Moscow's Olympic Stadium where the matches were held. The CIS Cup took place during pre-season, which in Russia at the time was during the winter, so the combination of the brutal weather and a subpar pitch was seen as an injury hazard for their star players.
Between 1993 and 2002 every edition was won by either Spartak Moscow or Dynamo Kiev, who were dominating their domestic leagues. However, when the disinterest began and the Russians and Ukrainians began fielding their U20's or not going at all, clubs from Azerbaijan, Moldova and Georgia began lifting trophies.
This weakening of the CIS Cup opened a path for other tournaments to attempt to take its place. Between 2006 and 2008 the Channel One Cup took the Ukrainian and Russian clubs to Israel to play in better weather, better pitches and decent crowds. The Channel One Cup was short lived to due to a financial crisis of the TV channel who organized it.
In 2012, a disfigured CIS Cup, who was inviting clubs from Finland and Serbia at that point, decided to rebrand and become a U21 national team tournament. This gave room for yet a new competition in 2013, the United Tournament, who briefly tried to organize a cup between Russian and Ukrainian clubs again but the War in Dunbas forced it to fold after just two editions.
The Commonwealth of Independent States Cup continued until it's last attempt in 2016. By this point, the cup that was once seen as continuation and symbol of Soviet pride had completely lost it's identity. It is worth reiterating that it was a FIFA sanctioned cup, and it was even the center of discussion for an official return of a Soviet League, or at least a joint Russian-Ukrainian League.
Ultimately the CIS Cup failed because it attempted to keep something alive that died in 1991, and that should be laid to rest.