🔗 Share this article

The Football Association of Ireland has voted in favor to submit a official proposal to European football's governing body, calling for the exclusion of Israeli football from continental team and national competitions.

Grounds for the Proposed Ban

The resolution, that had been proposed by Irish side Bohemians, cited claimed violations by the IFA of a couple of key Uefa statutes.

• Inability to implement and enforce an proper anti-racism policy.
• Organisation of clubs in disputed territories lacking the approval of the Palestinian Football Association.

Ballot Results and Future Actions

As stated in an official statement from the FAI, the resolution was backed by 74 votes, with seven opposed and two abstentions.

They intends to formally submit this request to the UEFA's decision-making body, asking for the prompt ban of the Israel Football Association from Uefa competitions.

In an extraordinary general meeting of the Football Association of Ireland, an standard motion was put to members. It was approved by a majority.

Earlier European Deliberations

The European body had previously paused intentions to ban Israeli football at the end of September, following the revealing of a US peace proposal for the region.

While Uefa never officially confirmed contemplating an extraordinary meeting on the matter, plans were believed to be quite advanced.

Global Context

The FAI move follows similar demands in September from the leaders of Turkish and Norwegian governing bodies for Israel's suspension from international competition.

These appeals were made after United Nations experts urged world and European football bodies to ban the Israeli FA, citing a UN commission of inquiry report that accused Israel of acts of genocide during the Gaza conflict.

Israel has denied these allegations and labeled the report as scandalous.

Potential Ramifications

If European football's authority decide to ban the IFA, it would probably strain relations with the US administration – co-hosts for the 2026 World Cup – which strongly opposes such an action.

Even though the European body has the power to exclude Israeli teams from its tournaments, it might not be able to stop them from taking part in qualification for the World Cup, which falls under world football's governing body.