2 FIFA Rulings on Israel, 1 Familiar Deference to MAGA
World football’s governing body reminded fans what its theoretical commitment to “neutrality” means in practice: siding with the genocidaire.
President Donald Trump poses for a selfie with FIFA President Gianni Infantino during the official draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup December 5, 2025, in Washington, DC.
(Hector Vivas/FIFA via Getty Images)
FIFA issued two highly anticipated decisions regarding Israel and Palestine last Thursday, and world football’s governing body reminded fans around the world what its theoretical commitment to political neutrality means in practice: siding with the authoritarian, the aggressor, the oppressor.
FIFA touts its commitment to remaining “neutral in political matters” and says “any form of discrimination… is strictly prohibited and punishable,” but under the reign of FIFA President Gianni Infantino, neutrality means a powerful victory – and for Infantino, that means MAGA. Taken together, these decisions constitute an obscene abdication of FIFA’s responsibility to uphold its own statutes and its publicly stated commitment to human rights. It’s also a worrying sign of what we can expect from Infantino at this summer’s World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
FIFA has issued two decisions regarding the Israel Football Federation. The first responded to an official complaint from the Palestinian Football Federation that its Israeli counterparts were holding matches on illegally annexed land in the West Bank. This complaint is based on facts and not assertions. In 2024, the United Nations identified at least eight Israeli football clubs that had developed or hosted matches “in Israeli colonial settlements in the occupied West Bank.” The following year, the sports and human rights group FairSquare published a letter by international scholars explaining how Israeli settlements are illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention, UN Security Resolutions 446 and 2334, and International Criminal Court (ICJ) rulings from 2004 and 2024. Human Rights Watch provided evidence. for a decade that the Israeli Football Federation organized matches in “West Bank settlements on land illegally taken from the Palestinians.”
And yet, FIFA’s Governance, Audit and Compliance Committee decided that no action was necessary because “the final legal status of the West Bank remains an unresolved and highly complex issue under public international law.” This would be something new for the ICJ and a cavalcade of international law specialists. In response, former ICJ judge Michael Dugard said: “FIFA and UEFA [the Union of European Football Associations] must be held responsible for having deliberately contradicted a ruling of the International Court of Justice on the occupied Palestinian territories.
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In the second judgment, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee found that the Israel Football Federation had done nothing significant to stop the racist and proudly violent behavior of the Israeli football team Beitar Jerusalem FC, whose ultras are infamous for their racism and bigotry. The club’s most devoted fans often chant “Death to the Arabs” during matches and sing songs with phrases like: “I don’t care how many or how they are killed / The elimination of the Arabs makes me elated.” »
The decision was scathing at times, asserting that “by failing to condemn or address discriminatory practices and exclusionary policies – particularly those affecting Palestinians – the IFA has become institutionally complicit in a system that violates the fundamental values of football.” He adds: “This complicity not only exposes the association to disciplinary responsibilities, but also undermines the moral authority of football as a tool for social cohesion and intercultural dialogue.”
In short, the IFA violated FIFA rules prohibiting (1) “offensive behavior and violations of the principles of fair play” and (2) “discrimination and racist abuse.”
What was FIFA’s response to these breaches of its neutrality doctrine? An insignificant fine, a “warning” for the IFA and the obligation to “display at home during its next three FIFA A-level competitive matches a significant and highly visible banner with the words “Football United the World – No to Discrimination” next to the logo of the Israel Football Federation. Seriously. A banner. A subject that will surely be endlessly mocked among the thugs of Beitar Jerusalem.
In short, both FIFA decisions managed to lie about basic facts while delivering a light slap on the wrist to Israel for violating basic anti-discrimination principles. These decisions constitute a double betrayal for the Palestinian Football Federation, which patiently followed FIFA’s procedures in the hope of obtaining a modicum of justice. But “neutrality” at FIFA favors the powerful, which currently means being party to ethnic cleansing and genocide.
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Infantino’s brazen cover-ups of Israeli crimes against the Palestinians are consistent with the Trump administration’s positions. Infantino is actually a Trump administrative toad – FIFA peace prize and all. This means that even if Israel didn’t even sniff at the World Cup, its shadow – alongside Trump’s – will be cast over the 2026 tournament.
Infantino’s deference to Trump may be most clearly seen in FIFA’s treatment of the Iranian team, which did make the World Cup, a feat achieved at Azadi Stadium, a famous sports complex that the United States and Israel have since razed. Once again, this “war crime” was committed without concern for Infantino, who was too busy committing to building a network of soccer fields to replace the real inhabitants of Gaza. Infantino could give a masterclass in sycophancy and sportswashing. Few people can use sports to interfere with war criminals and distract from the bloody work of an empire like Infantino.
The Iranian team is scheduled to play its first round in the United States, and Trump has already threatened the team, posting on social media: “The Iranian national soccer team is welcome to the World Cup, but I really don’t think it is appropriate for them to be there, for their own life and safety.” »
Iran has asked FIFA to move its matches to Mexico, and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum is in favor. And yet, Infantino rejected the request, out of fear that it would embarrass Trump — not to mention how it endangers Iranian players, coaches and their families.
Even though the war against Iran and the genocide in Gaza are topics that Infantino wants to cover up during the World Cup, don’t expect the people of the United States, Canada and Mexico to let him. International organizations are calling for a boycott of matches in the United States. Fans, not happy about having to face the ICE to attend a football match, do not buy tickets. And there are plans for protest from those who do not want FIFA to go unpunished for its complicity in war and genocide. The people are ready to remind the world that the beautiful game must not be a fig leaf for imperialism and ethnic cleansing.
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