Israel’s participation in European football faces its most serious threat with Uefa officials set to meet next week to consider whether to suspend the country's clubs and national teams, according to several reports.
The Times newspaper first reported that Uefa’s executive committee is considering convening in the coming days to address the issue. While no formal date has yet been set, multiple sources confirmed discussions are underway after growing calls from within European football and the wider international community to act.
Israel, which joined Uefa in 1994, has faced intensifying criticism over its military campaign in Gaza. The war began after the Hamas attacks of October 7, 2023, but has since led to a humanitarian catastrophe that United Nations officials last week described as a “genocide in occupied Palestinian territory”.
The Palestinian Football Association has long lobbied for Israel’s exclusion from international football. Its president, Jibril Rajoub, said on Thursday he will meet Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin next week, along with IOC president Kirsty Coventry, to press the case.
“Israel has violated the principles, values and FIifas statutes,” Rajoub told Norwegian broadcaster TV2. “Therefore, I believe Israel should be sanctioned. It is double standards to ban Russia within hours of invading Ukraine in 2022 while Israel is allowed to continue despite committing crimes against the Palestinian football family.”
A suspension by Uefa would be politically explosive and immediately draw resistance from Washington. A US state department spokesperson told Sky News: “We will absolutely work to fully stop any effort to attempt to ban Israel’s national soccer team from the World Cup.” The Fifa World Cup will be held jointly in the US, Canada and Mexico next year.
That distinction underlines the complexities facing football’s governing bodies. While Uefa could suspend Israel from its own competitions – including the Champions League, Europa League and European Championship qualifiers – only Fifa can decide on World Cup participation. Fifa has so far remained silent, declining to respond to requests for comment.
For Israel, the stakes are significant. The national team sit third in their World Cup qualifying group, behind Norway and Italy, and are due to play both nations next month. At club level, Maccabi Tel Aviv remain active in Europe and are scheduled to play Aston Villa in the Europa League on November 6.
Israeli FA president Moshe Zuares insisted football should not be targeted. “Stopping football will not help in any way,” he told TV2. “I didn’t see the war between Russia and Ukraine end after Russia was banned. I want peace, I want our children to play with Palestinian children, but banning football will not solve the conflict.”
Uefa itself has declined to comment, though member federations have begun to signal their positions. Norway, whose football president Lise Klaveness sits on the Uefa executive committee, has been among the most vocal. “Neither we nor other organisations can remain indifferent to the humanitarian suffering in Gaza,” Klaveness said earlier this month, confirming her federation will donate proceeds from an upcoming match against Israel to humanitarian relief.
Other associations are more cautious. The Dutch federation (KNVB) said it has received no official notice of a vote but would “take a position” once formally notified. Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez recently urged for Israel’s exclusion from international sport, though officials at the Spanish FA have remained quiet.
Earlier this month, a large coalition of human rights organisations, former footballers and advocacy groups launched #GameOverIsrael, a multi-nation campaign to boycott Israeli teams and players from participating in domestic competitions in Europe.
The political dimensions extend beyond Europe. Fifa president Gianni Infantino maintains a close relationship with US President Donald Trump, who has been outspoken in his support for Israel. Any suspension would therefore test the fragile balance between football’s governing institutions and global power politics, just months before the US co-hosts the 2026 World Cup.
United Nations rapporteurs, meanwhile, intensified the pressure this week by calling directly on Fifa and Uefa to act. “Sports must reject the perception that it is business as usual,” they said. “Sporting bodies must not turn a blind eye to grave human rights violations, especially when their platforms are used to normalise injustices.”
For now, Israel’s players and clubs remain eligible to compete, but with Uefa insiders confirming that an emergency session is being prepared, the possibility of exclusion looms larger than at any time in the nation’s 30 years in European football.
