FIFA has penalized the football federations of Italy and Norway following anti-Israel protests during Israel’s recent World Cup qualifying matches. Both matches, held in October, were overshadowed by violence and political demonstrations targeting Israel’s actions in Gaza.
Protests Disrupt Matches, Federations Fined
Israel played two away fixtures in the European qualifying window, suffering heavy defeats against Norway and Italy. On October 11, Israel lost 5-0 to Norway in Oslo, followed by a 3-0 loss to Italy in Udine on October 15.
Amid these matches, spectators from both countries disrupted the Israeli national anthem. FIFA charged the Italian Football Federation 12,500 Swiss francs ($15,500) and the Norwegian Football Federation 10,000 Swiss francs ($12,400) for the disturbances.
“𝑭𝒂𝒏𝒔 𝒎𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒔, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒓𝒖𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅,” 𝒂 𝑭𝑰𝑭𝑨 𝒔𝒑𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅.
FIFA clarified that no penalties were imposed for spectators displaying Palestinian flags or chanting slogans, as these actions did not violate the organization’s rules.
Public Outcry and UEFA Considerations
Protests were also visible outside the stadiums. Ahead of Israel’s match against Italy, demonstrators held banners reading, “Let’s build resistance and stop Zionism,” while one protester shouted through a microphone:
“𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝑰𝒔𝒓𝒂𝒆𝒍 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚? 𝑾𝒉𝒚 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒁𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒐𝒄𝒄𝒆𝒓?”
Meanwhile, UEFA is reportedly considering a potential ban on Israel from international football due to the ongoing conflict in Gaza. A referendum among member countries may decide the matter. For now, opposing countries have stated that they are obliged to honor the scheduled matches until a final decision is made.
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