Israel will resume its qualification campaign for the FIFA World Cup 2026 this coming weekend amid widespread public protests and growing demands for football’s governing body to sanction the country over its genocide in Gaza.

Despite the widespread opposition, Israel’s upcoming World Cup qualifiers – against Norway on Saturday and Italy on Tuesday – will go ahead as scheduled after FIFA sidestepped the issue by saying it cannot “solve geopolitical problems”.

Football fans and several experts have accused FIFA and UEFA of double standards over their failure to act against Israel in the two years of its war on Gaza, while swiftly sanctioning Russia following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Who has asked for a ban on Israel, and why?

More than 30 legal experts have called on UEF

See Full Page