FIFA president Gianni Infantino
The Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) has responded to growing calls to suspend Israel from all football related activities including the World Cup over Gaza conflict.
There have been growing calls from the football community, led by former Manchester United forward Eric Cantona, for Israel to be banned from international football over its continued attacks on Gaza.
Eric Cantona and others calling for the ban of Israel have urged FIFA to apply the same precedent it used when Russia was expelled following the country’s invasion of Ukraine.
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Despite the growing calls, FIFA in a statement by president Gianni Infantino has said the world football governing body has no plans of banning Israel from all football related activities because they cannot resolve geopolitical issues.
“FIFA has no plans to ban Israel from competitions. No action will be taken against Israel; FIFA cannot resolve geopolitical issues,” Gianni Infantino said in a statement as quoted by AFP.
Israel are currently third with 9 points in Group I for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifications in Europe. Group I includes: Israel, Norway, Italy, Estonia, and Moldova.
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