The Israel Football Association was fined by FIFA for racism and discrimination violations following a Palestinian report.
Published on 24 March 2026
The Palestinian Football Association (PFA) on Tuesday called for the Israeli Football Association (IFA) to be banned after a FIFA report found “numerous violations” of anti-discrimination obligations.
“We maintain our authority and continue our efforts to ensure that the Israeli Football Association is expelled from all international institutions,” PFA chief Jibril Rajoub, who also heads the Palestinian Olympic Committee, said during a press conference in the occupied West Bank city of al-Bireh.
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FIFA last week fined the IFA 150,000 Swiss francs ($190,700) for the violations, “a significant decision” according to Rajoub, who said the fine was still “below the required minimum”.
Rajoub cited the “racist nature” of the IFA, the alleged criminal activity of some Israeli sports officials, and the inclusion of football clubs from Israeli West Bank settlements in the Israeli federation as grounds for the ban.
A recent report by the disciplinary committee of world football’s governing body found that the IFA had “failed to take meaningful action against Beitar Jerusalem” for “persistent and well-documented racist behaviour”.
Rajoub, who is also secretary general of the central committee of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah party, said Tuesday that Beitar Jerusalem is “an extreme example of racism, fascism and discrimination” but that such attitudes are common among Israeli football clubs.
On alleged criminal activity by Israeli sports officials, Rajoub said he was referring to the players killed during Israel’s two years of genocidal war on Gaza and the destruction of several sports facilities in the Palestinian territory during the same war.
“Some figures within Israeli sports have either participated or openly supported what is happening,” Rajoub said. He said 1,007 athletes and coaches were killed and 265 sports facilities were damaged in Gaza since the war began in October 2023.
Media restrictions and limited access in Gaza have prevented AFP from independently confirming casualties or covering the fighting independently.
At least five football clubs based in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank are members of the Israeli Football Association.
Following a separate investigation, FIFA announced that no action would be taken against the IFA over allegations that Israeli clubs based in the occupied West Bank participate in Israeli leagues.
The United Nations has repeatedly condemned Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which Israel has occupied since 1967, as illegal under international law.
Israel is part of European football’s governing body UEFA.
