Irish soccer body votes to call for suspension of Israel from UEFA competition

The Irish Football Association voted on Saturday to ask UEFA to ban Israel from the competition.

He represents the third example of a European National football governing body He called for Israel to be suspended from the European Football Association and join Norway and Turkey. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez also called for the Israeli national team to be suspended from international competition.

The Irish Football Association issued the resolution he proposed Irish club Bohemians, with more than 50% of its delegates supporting it.

The motion referred to two alleged violations of UEFA laws by the Israel Football Association. The first is “organizing clubs in the occupied Palestinian territories without the approval of the Palestinian Football Association,” and the second is “the alleged failure of FIFA to impose an effective anti-racism policy.”

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

Israeli soccer fans wave flags as Israel warms up ahead of the 2026 World Cup Eurozone qualifiers, October 11, in Oslo, Norway. (Friedrich Varfjeel/NTB/AFP via Getty Images)

The Irish body also said in a statement that it “will call on UEFA to publish transparent criteria for the suspension or exclusion of member associations to ensure equal treatment of all members.”

The Israeli team is scheduled to complete its match World Cup qualifying campaign It will face Moldova on November 16. The team occupies third place in its group and cannot occupy first place to automatically qualify for next year’s tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico, or even second place to compete in the qualifiers.

But growing global opposition to Israeli sports teams has put athletes and fans in disadvantaged positions in 2025.

UEFA was reportedly moving towards a Vote on Israel’s comment regarding the war on Gaza last September, but the proposal was temporarily suspended. FIFA President Gianni Infantino announced that no action would be taken against the team on October 3, following the president’s historic peace proposal. Donald Trump And Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

But even after the peace proposal, Israeli sports teams faced opposition and exclusion.

Released hostage expresses regret that Israeli fans were banned from attending a football match in the UK due to fears of pro-Palestinian protests.

The Israeli national gymnastics team was denied visas to enter Indonesia to participate in the World Gymnastics Championships in October.

The Indonesian government cited security and safety concerns for denying visas, but did not do so Israeli Gymnastics Federation (IGF) A Fox News Digital spokesperson confirmed that the country’s security team gave the athletes clearance.

“We have obtained permission from the Israeli security authorities to participate in the World Championships taking into account the necessary security protocols in place. On our part, all preparations have been completed – the registration process, entry visas to Indonesia and confirmation by the Israeli security authorities,” the forum said.

Israeli gymnast Eyal Indig described Indonesia’s decision as a “blatant incident of discrimination based on nationality”, in an interview with Fox News Digital.

The Indonesian Embassy in the United States responded to Fox News Digital’s request for comment, saying: “The Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia has no further comment to share on this matter.”

In England, fans of the Israeli soccer team Maccabi Tel Aviv were banned from attending the team’s last matchMatch against Aston Villa United Kingdom this week, also due to safety concerns. Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were reportedly the target of violence in Amsterdam before and during the soccer team’s match against Ajax last year.

However, trouble broke out at the match on Thursday, with anti-Israel protesters in the vicinity.

British police said Six people were arrested on Thursday Before the Israeli team’s match against Aston Villa in the Europa League match.

About 200 protesters gathered near a park near the Trinity Road stand at Aston Villa Park. Among these demonstrators are members of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, according to the Associated Press. Some pro-Israel protesters were also present.

Meanwhile, the Israeli cycling team Israel-Premier Tech (IPT) won. It lost its main sponsor Despite meeting the sponsor’s request to remove the word “Israel” from the team’s name.

Canadian company Premier Tech announced that it would end its partnership with the team in a statement issued on Friday.

“After multiple discussions with the team and careful evaluation of all relevant circumstances, Premier Tech has decided to step down as co-sponsor of the team effective immediately,” the statement read.

“Although we noted the team’s decision to change its name for the 2026 season, the underlying reason for Premier Tech sponsoring the team has overshadowed it to the point that it has become unfeasible for us to continue as a sponsor.”

In September, after agreeing to drop the word “Israel” from its name, the team said it “expects the team to evolve toward a new name excluding “Israel,” resulting in a new identity and brand.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to IPT for comment.

The team was excluded from October’s race in Italy, the Giro del Emilia, due to concerns about potentially disruptive pro-Palestine protests.

Click here to download the FOX NEWS app

Organizers made the decision after protesters repeatedly disrupted the recent Spanish march with Israel-Premier Tech in attendance.

Seven of the past 11 days of racing in the Vuelta have been cut short or interrupted due to Government of Spain It is estimated that more than 100,000 people were on the streets of Madrid during the final phase in September.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Follow Fox News Digital Sports coverage on Xand subscribe to Fox News Sports Huddle Newsletter.