LAUSANNE.- The FIFA Disciplinary Committee fined this Thursday 150,000 Swiss francs (165,000 euros or 190,000 dollars) to the Israeli Football Federation for “serious and repeated violations” of their obligations in the fight against discrimination.
The Israeli body “failed to take concrete and transparent measures against discriminatory behavior,” especially in the face of racist attitudes among club fans. Beitar Jerusalemand “tolerated politicized and militaristic messages in football contexts,” FIFA explained in a statement.
In his decision, explained in 40 pages, he lists a cascade of racist behavior in Israeli football, ranging from slogans about racial purity in the Beitar stands to insults to Arab players, to “militaristic” messages from leaders of the professional leagues and the Maccabi Netanya on their social networks.
FIFA considered the fines decided by the IFA against Beitar, without expressly linking them to racist incidents.
It was also found that the IFA “has not made any public statement condemning racism, nor launched any campaign to combat discrimination, nor taken any measures aimed at favoring the inclusion of Arab or Palestinian players.”
The Israeli Football Federation must pay two-thirds of the fine “within 30 days” and invest the rest “in the implementation of a general plan aimed at guaranteeing action against discrimination.”
Likewise, in his next three international matches at home, Israel must display a banner of significant size and highly visible reading “Football Unites The World – No to Discrimination”, FIFA added.
No measures in case of the West Bank
On the other hand, FIFA decided not to take “any measure” on the Israeli clubs established in the illegal colonies of West Bankthus rejecting a Palestinian request that had been waiting for two years and that had been supported by several experts from United Nations.
The world soccer body chose “not to take any action taking into account that (…) the final legal status of the West Bank is an unresolved and extremely complex issue in public international law,” it announced in a statement.
“FIFA should continue to promote dialogue and offer mediation” between the Israeli and Palestinian Football Federations, the text adds.
