FIFA Council accepted a Palestinian Football Association (PFA) petition on Thursday, announcing that it is investigating alleged human rights violations and discrimination within the Israel Football Association.
As part of the investigation, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee will explore allegations of discrimination raised by the PFA, whereas the FIFA Governance, Audit and Compliance Committee has been tasked with examining the “the participation in Israeli competitions of Israeli football teams allegedly based in the territory of Palestine”.
Article 15, Chapter 2 of FIFA’s Disciplinary Code addresses discrimination within football, establishing a framework for tackling discriminatory behaviour in all its forms, including racism, xenophobia, and any other conduct that undermines the principles of fairness and equality. The article gives FIFA the right to impose strict sanctions on individuals and organizations found in violation, ranging from fines and match suspensions to more severe measures such as exclusion from competitions.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino stated that FIFA is implementing due diligence on what he called “a sensitive matter,” and that the council is following the advice of independent experts.
During the FIFA Congress in Bangkok in May, the Palestinian Football Association asked for the suspension of its Israeli counterpart and the exclusion of Israeli teams from FIFA competitions, accusing the Israeli Football Association (IFA) of violating FIFA’s discrimination regulations.
FIFA had originally planned to convene an extraordinary session of its ruling council by July 20 to review an independent legal analysis and determine the next steps. However, the deadline was extended as legal experts asked for additional time to finalize their report.
In the past, the mixture of sports and politics caused Israel’s expulsion from an Asian Football Confederation (AFC) in 1974, following the tense relationship with Arab countries in the post 1967 Six-Day war years. In 1982 Israel played its first game in Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), Israeli clubs began taking part in European club competitions in 1991 and in 1994 Israel became a full member of UEFA.
Palestine, on the other hand, became a FIFA member only in 1998, following the Oslo Accords, joining other non-sovereign states such as England, Wales, and Scotland.
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