ISTANBUL: Turkiye on Friday became the first UEFA member to publicly call for Israel to be suspended from soccer, calling the situation in Gaza “inhumane and unacceptable.”
Turkish Football Federation president Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu’s letter to international soccer leaders came as European body UEFA moves toward a vote to suspend Israel, whose men’s team is in the middle of qualifying for next year’s World Cup.
“It is now time for FIFA and UEFA to act,” Haciosmanoglu wrote in the letter quoted by the Anadolu news agency.
“Despite positioning themselves as defenders of civic values and peace, the sporting world and football institutions have remained silent for far too long,” the Turkish official said.
Haciosmanoglu is not on the 20-member UEFA ruling committee, which is expected to have a majority to exclude Israel if a vote is called. The committee includes Israel soccer leader Moshe Zuares, who was elected in April.
The head of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, is closely aligned with 2026 World Cup co-host the United States and President Donald Trump so is seen as unlikely to back a move to suspend Israel.
The US State Department said on Thursday it will work to stop any efforts aiming to ban Israel’s team from the World Cup.
Infantino chairs a meeting of FIFA’s ruling council next Thursday in Zurich.
Norway hosts Israel in a World Cup qualifier in Oslo on Oct. 11 and Italy is due to play Israel in Udine three days later. The Norwegian soccer federation has promised to give its profits on ticket sales to Doctors Without Borders for humanitarian work in Gaza.
FIFA didn’t immediately return requests seeking comment on Friday.
Pressure on international sports to act against Israel has grown this month after days of chaos at the Spanish Vuelta cycle race — which led Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to call for a sporting ban on Israel — a Sept. 9 airstrike by Israel targeting Hamas leaders in Qatar’s capital Doha, and a United Nations Human Rights Council-appointed inquiry accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza.
Haciosmanoglu said the situation in Gaza was now more urgent and “football has always been far more than a sport.”
“It is a universal language that brings together different cultures, fosters friendship, and strengthens the bonds of solidarity among peoples,” he wrote. “Guided by these values, we feel compelled to raise our deep concern regarding the unlawful (and more importantly, completely inhumane and unacceptable) situation being carried out by the State of Israel in Gaza and its surrounding areas.”
Turkiye President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in July called Israel a “terrorist state” for its actions in Syria and a destabilizing force in the region.
Israel has qualified for only one men’s World Cup, in 1970, when it advanced by playing against Australia and New Zealand in a section involving teams in Asia not from the Middle East. Israel was exiled from Asian soccer a few years later and has been a full member of UEFA since 1994.
Turkish soccer leader urges FIFA, UEFA to suspend Israel
https://arab.news/9nt6y
Turkish soccer leader urges FIFA, UEFA to suspend Israel
- Turkish Football Federation President Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu says sporting world and football institutions have remained silent for far too long
- European soccer’s governing body appears poised for an emergency vote next week on suspending Israel from competitions
Messi dazzles as Miami beat Vancouver to win MLS title
- Argentina superstar Messi provided assists for two goals and helped create another to spark wild celebrations before a rapturous home crowd at the Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale
FORT LAUDERDALE, United States: Lionel Messi inspired Inter Miami to their first ever MLS Cup title on Saturday, playing a leading role in a 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Whitecaps in Florida.
Argentina superstar Messi provided assists for two goals and helped create another to spark wild celebrations before a rapturous home crowd at the Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale.
Miami took the lead after an early Edier Ocampo own goal but were left reeling by Ali Ahmed’s second half-equalizer for Vancouver.
But Messi then laid on an assist for Argentina international team-mate Rodrigo De Paul to put Miami 2-1 up before supplying the pass for Tadeo Allende’s injury time goal that sealed victory.
Miami’s first Major League Soccer crown provided glittering vindication for co-owner David Beckham, the former England and Manchester United star who had long dreamed of bringing success to Miami.
“There was a lot of sleepless nights, but I always believed,” Beckham said afterwards. “I always believed in bringing the team here, and when I found the right partners I knew anything was possible.
“We always promised our fans that we would bring success, and bring the best players, and today we’ve achieved that.”
Vancouver — spearheaded by German legend Thomas Mueller — had looked the likelier victor after recovering from Ocampo’s eighth minute own goal to level through Ali Ahmed in the 60th minute.
The Whitecaps almost took the lead moments after the equalizer, with Emmanuel Sabbi’s shot crashing off both posts in the 62nd minute as Miami escaped.
But with the Whitecaps in complete control, the Canadians were stunned when Miami regained the lead after a blunder by midfielder Andres Cubas.
Cubas took too long in possession and was robbed by Messi, who skipped clear before releasing De Paul to provide the clinical finish.
Vancouver never recovered from that hammer blow and Miami started the party in injury time when Messi played in Allende for the third to make it 3-1.
The win marks the crowning achievement of Inter Miami since the club — which entered the league as an expansion club in 2020 — successfully lured Messi to Miami in 2023.
Saturday’s victory also marked the end of an era for two key figures in Miami’s rise to the top of Major League Soccer, with former Spanish internationals Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets heading into retirement.
