The Israel Football Association called the call for the national team's exclusion hypocritical.
The President of the Israel Football Association, Moshe Zauras, reacted to the call from countries to exclude the national team from international tournaments. His words were reported by Corriere della Sera.
Zauras stated that no one has explained what benefit the isolation of Israel could bring, and added that in light of current events, the threat of exclusion has already lost its relevance. He characterized such demands as hypocritical. Zauras expressed hope that football can once again become a platform for restoring cooperation and mutual understanding between peoples.
On September 23, eight UN experts appealed to the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) to exclude Israel from international tournaments. The motivation cited is the "ongoing genocide in Palestine."
The World Cup 2026 qualifying match between the national teams of Italy and Israel will take place later on October 14. It will start at 21:45 Latvian time.
