How football’s governing bodies support illegal Israeli settlement clubs
Israeli players from the Ironi Ariel football club in a training session at their stadium in the illegal Israeli settlement of Ariel in the occupied West Bank on 21 September 2016
Mahmoud Elsobky writes in Middle East Eye on 28 August 2026:
Football in the occupied West Bank has been brought to a near standstill since Israel launched its genocidal war on Gaza.
Palestinian players struggle to reach training grounds, matches are routinely cancelled because of checkpoints and military closures, and hundreds of sports facilities have either been damaged or destroyed.
But in illegal Israeli settlements, Israeli football teams are thriving, with players continuing to train and compete while clubs expand their facilities.
An investigation by Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ) and Bridges Investigations for Middle East Eye has found that illegal settlement-based clubs are participating in Israeli domestic competitions with the backing of the Israel Football Association (IFA), while Fifa and Uefa continue to recognise and financially support the IFA.
According to the investigation, Fifa, which formally says it is committed to respecting internationally recognised human rights through its statutes and strategic goals, has not only declined to take action against settlement clubs; its Fifa+ platform also broadcasts their matches.
For Palestinian players, the consequences have been felt every time they try to train or travel to a match. Mahdi al-Assi, a goalkeeper for the Palestinian youth team, knows this well. Getting to the pitch can mean hours spent at checkpoints, while training itself can be disrupted by raids and teargas, he says. “More than once, I’ve set off three or four hours before training, only for them [Israeli soldiers] to turn us back at the checkpoint for no reason at all,” he told MEE.
Meanwhile, just a few kilometres from where al-Assi plays, the floodlights are on at a football pitch inside the Israeli settlement of Givat Ze’ev. Here, the Beitar Givat Ze’ev team trains on land that international law classifies as occupied Palestinian territory.
A journey of checkpoints and closures
Al-Assi said that routine travel between Palestinian cities has become a gruelling ordeal because of Israeli military checkpoints. Restrictions have grown since Israel’s last elections in 2022, and since October 2023, when Israel launched its genocidal war on Gaza.
According to al-Assi, Israeli forces also disrupt sporting activities by storming pitches.
Since Israel launched its war on Gaza, 292 sports facilities have been completely or partially destroyed in the besieged enclave and the occupied West Bank, according to data obtained from the Palestinian Football Association.
The association’s league has also been suspended. “It became too dangerous to keep the league going,” said Susan Shalabi, vice-president of the Palestinian Football Association.