The Irish Football Association has demanded an immediate suspension from Israel over the Israeli Football Association’s violation of UEFA regulations in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Published November 8, 2025
Members of Ireland’s governing body have approved a resolution instructing UEFA to submit a formal motion to UEFA for the immediate suspension of Israel from European competitions, the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) said.
The resolution passed by FAI member states on Saturday cited violations of two articles of UEFA regulations by the Israeli Football Association. namely, the failure to implement and enforce effective anti-racism policies and the allowing of Israeli clubs to play in the occupied Palestinian territories without the consent of the Palestinian Football Association.
According to a statement from the FAI, the resolution was supported by 74 votes, with seven voting against and two abstaining.
UEFA considered a vote early last month on whether to suspend Israel from European competition over the massacre in the Gaza Strip, but the vote did not take place as a US-brokered ceasefire came into effect on October 10.
Ireland’s resolution follows calls by the heads of soccer’s governing bodies in Turkey and Norway in September to ban Israel from international competitions.
The request comes after UN experts appealed to FIFA and UEFA to suspend Israel from international football, citing a UN Commission of Inquiry report that found Israel committed genocide during the Gaza War.
“Israel will be allowed to operate with impunity.”
In October, more than 30 legal experts called on UEFA to ban Israel and its clubs from participating.
The letter highlighted the damage Israel is inflicting on sports in the Gaza Strip. At least 421 Palestinian soccer players have been killed since Israel launched its military offensive in October 2023, and the letter described Israel’s bombing campaign as “systematically destroying Gaza’s soccer infrastructure.”
FIFA President Gianni Infantino ignored the call, indirectly addressing the issue as a “geopolitical issue” at the FIFA Executive Board meeting on October 2.
“We are committed to harnessing the power of soccer to bring together the divided peoples of our world,” Infantino said.
Abdullah Al Arian, associate professor of history at Georgetown University in Qatar, said the apparent preferential treatment given to the Israeli soccer team is an extension of the “total impunity” the country has enjoyed during the two years of war.
“Sporting organizations are often a reflection of the broader power politics that are happening[in the world]and they are just doing what we have seen happening in all areas of politics, and Israel is not held accountable,” Al-Arian told Al-Jazeera.
“Israel (Israel) has been allowed to operate with complete impunity throughout this genocide and has enjoyed this punishment for decades.”
In 2024, the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) submitted an argument accusing the Israeli Football Association (IFA) of violating FIFA regulations by including clubs based in the Gaza War and illegal settlements in the Palestinian territories in its national football league.
The PFA called on FIFA to impose “appropriate sanctions” against the Israeli national team and club teams, including international suspensions.
FIFA called for Israel to be banned, but the international federation deferred a decision by referring the matter to a disciplinary committee. Al-Arian called it “a move that keeps the bureaucracy running without bringing about any real progress.”
“Ultimately, political decisions will be made at the highest levels of the organization,” he said.
