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Ireland’s soccer federation to submit motion to UEFA to ban Israel from competitions
DUBLIN (AP) — Ireland’s soccer federation voted Saturday to submit a motion to UEFA to ban Israel from competitions organized by the European governing body.
The motion — proposed by Irish club Bohemians — required support from 50% of the federation’s delegates and it passed with a clear majority, according to a Football Association of Ireland statement.
It cited two alleged violations of UEFA statutes by the Israel Football Association. The first is “organizing clubs in occupied Palestinian territories without the consent of the Palestinian FA” and the second is “the alleged failure of the IFA to enforce an effective anti-racism policy.”
UEFA’s executive committee next meets on Dec. 3 in Nyon.
Israel will complete its World Cup qualifying campaign with a match against Moldova on Nov. 16. The team is third in its group and cannot finish first to qualify automatically to next year’s tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico, or even second to get into the playoffs.
Plans by UEFA to vote on whether to suspend Israel from European competition because of the two-year conflict in Gaza were paused last month after a peace proposal by U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
In its statement, the FAI also said it would “call on UEFA to publish transparent criteria for the suspension or exclusion of member associations to ensure equal treatment of all members.”
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
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