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Israel’s place at next year’s World Cup is reportedly under threat amid claims Qatar are pressuring European football’s governing body to expel them from all of its events.
Israel Hayom and Channel 12 report, via The Times of Israel, that Qatar – one of UEFA’s biggest financial backers, are pushing for a vote to be held today on the national team’s place in its competitions following Israel’s strike on Doha.
Israel FA officials deny reports that a vote is to take place. UEFA’s official website states the next meeting is scheduled for December 3. However, the reports claim Qatar is calling for an emergency meeting as soon as today.
Israel has come under increasing international pressure to curtail its war in Gaza waged after Hamas used the territory to launch a surprise attack on October 7th which massacred more than 1,000 Israelis.
UK Prime Minister Kier Starmer and French counterpart Emmanuel Macron raised the heat by recognising Palestine as a state yesterday – a historic move which Israel PM Netanyahu called a ‘reward’ for Hamas terrorists.
On the pitch, Ran Ben Shimon’s side are currently deep into the qualifying campaign for next year’s World Cup, where they sit third in their group behind Italy on goal difference. They must qualify through a UEFA-run qualification process, with the Israel FA belonging to the European federation rather than Asia.
But their efforts in qualifying could be in vain with UEFA reportedly facing pressure from Qatar to hold a vote on Israel’s place in their competitions.
Israel could be kicked out of the World Cup at a summit set to be held today, a report claims
UK Prime Minister Kier Starmer made the unprecedented move to recognise Palestine
Last year, UEFA underlined their relationship with Qatar by signing a lucrative six-year sponsorship deal with Qatar Airways, the flag carrier of the Middle Eastern state, worth a reported £436million.
According to reports in Israel, officials from the nation’s Football Association are working around the clock to recruit allies in the sports and diplomatic worlds to prevent the vote, with a senior source saying: ‘We are working on it on all fronts.’
It has also been reported that Germany and Hungary will fight against the vote being held.
Pressure is understood to have been applied following the Israeli strike on Hamas leaders in Doha earlier this month, an operation which appears to have failed to kill the teror chiefs, which have halted talks mediated by Qatar on a ceasefire in Gaza.
UEFA, FIFA and the English, Israel and Qatari FAs have been contacted for comment.
The latest development comes after Prime Minister Keir Starmer moved to recognise a Palestinian state, insisting that the UK would press on with its symbolic gesture because of the ‘growing horror’ of the Israeli offensive in the occuped enclave, and the Netanyahu government’s failure to agree a ceasefire.
In a video posted on social media he said the move was intended ‘to revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis’ in a two-state system, and includes fresh sanctions against Hamas leaders.
UEFA and Qatar have a close relationship, with the Middle East state’s flagship airline, Qatar Airways, extending its sponsorship deal with the governing body last year
In a co-ordinated move, Canada and Australia also moved to recognise Palestine with statements by PMs Mark Carney and Anthony Albanese, while French president Emmanuel Macron recognised the state to a backdrop of pro-Palestine protests across Europe.
‘We want two states living side by side in peace and security to become a reality,’ Macron said. Recognising a Palestinian state ‘is in the interest’ of peace and is ‘a defeat for Hamas’, he added.
‘However, currently Israel is further extending its military operation in Gaza with the stated objective of destroying Hamas, but there are hundreds of thousands of people who have been displaced, injured, famished, traumatised.
‘We’re so convinced that this recognition is the only solution that will allow for Israel to live in peace, France has never wavered, standing by Israel’s side even when its security was at stake, including when there were Iranian strikes,’ he said.
‘This recognition of the state of Palestine is a defeat for Hamas.’
Macron explained that the ‘top priority’ is to ensure the release of 48 hostages and put an end to military operations throughout the territory of Gaza. ‘I commend the efforts undertaken by Qatar, Egypt and the US to achieve this,’ he said.
‘I ask Israel to do nothing more that would thwart these.’
Antonio Guterres, the secretary general of the United Nations also acknowledged the Palestinian delegation and noted his disappointment that they were denied the opportunity to be fully represented after the US revoked their visas.
French president Emmanuel Macron backed Starmer’s stance to recognise Palestine
‘The situation is intolerable and it is deteriorating by the hour,’ he said.
‘We are here today to help navigate the only way out of this nightmare, a two-state solution where two independent sovereign democratic states, Israel and Palestine, live side by side in peace and security.’
He went on to say that without two states, there will be no peace in the Middle East and warns that ‘radicalism’ will spread around the world.
And Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas added: ‘We call for a permanent ceasefire, we need to ensure humanitarian access through the United Nations and UNRWA. I know we need to guarantee the release of hostages, all hostages and prisoners.
‘I address the Israeli people saying, our future and yours banks on peace, enough violence and war. Our generation deserves to enjoy freedom and security.
‘Let the people in our region live in durable peace and good neighbourliness,’ he said.
In the world of football, Man United legend Eric Cantona has urged football’s governing bodies to act against Israel. Speaking at the Together 4 Palestine event in London this month, he drew a comparison to the sanctions levelled against Russia following their invasion of Ukraine in calling for Israel to be suspended.
‘I played for France and Manchester United. I know that international football is more than just sport, it is culture, it is political, it is soft power,’ he said.
Pro-Palestine protests have swept Europe with mass protests taking place in Italy this week
Manchester United and France legend Eric Cantona has backed calls for Israel to be suspended from football
‘In a way that a country represents itself on a global stage, the time has come to suspend Israel from that privilege. Four days after Russia started a war in Ukraine, FIFA and UEFA suspended Russia. We are now 716 days into what Amnesty International have called a genocide – and yet Israel continue to be allowed to participate.
‘Why, why is it double standards? FIFA and UEFA must suspend Israel. Clubs everywhere must refuse to play Israeli teams. Current players everywhere must refuse to play against Israeli teams.
‘We all remember apartheid in South Africa. The Sporting boycott was critical in ending it. We have power. You have power. And football fans around the world have power. Those teams represent you. It’s time for everyone to get off the sidelines. Who will follow me? You?’
Cantona’s words have been echoed by Patxi Lopez, a spokesperson for Spain’s governing party the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party, saying: ‘What we want is for people to realize that if Israeli teams cannot take part in sporting events or Eurovision, some are starting to open their eyes. Because ours are wide open and do not tolerate what they see, which is why we cannot and will not remain silent.’
