Israelis celebrated on Wednesday after deciding their opponents for this summer's Paris soccer tournament.
Israel will face Paraguay, Mali and a yet-to-be-determined Asian qualifier. Also participating are Arab countries Morocco and Egypt, which have diplomatic relations with Israel but have had tense sports relations for decades. Israel could face them later in the tournament. Sub-Saharan Mali is 95% Muslim and severed diplomatic relations with Israel after the Yom Kippur War in 1973.
As the countdown to Paris 2024 gains momentum and the Gaza conflict drags on, could Israeli soccer matches be boycotted?
In other sports, Israeli athletes are used to countries like Iran regularly refusing to participate because of Israel's participation.
Israeli soccer has always followed this path. Israel was a member of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) from 1954 to 1974, but due to Arab boycotts, several Arab and Muslim countries refused to play against the AFC. Geopolitical tensions reached a fever pitch, and Israel “advanced” to the qualifying stage of the 1958 World Cup without playing a single game. Because of this, FIFA was forced to schedule a play-off between Israel and Wales to ensure that the Israeli team would play at least one opponent. Wales won that play-off.
Israel was expelled from the AFC in 1974 and forced to play in FIFA's Oceanic Confederation, where their opponents are on the other side of the world. In 1992, it finally became a member of European football under UEFA.
Qualifying for Paris is a historic milestone
Israel's qualification to the Paris Olympic Soccer Tournament is a historic milestone, ending a nearly 50-year absence from the Olympics, and should rightly be celebrated. However, if Israel's ground invasion of Gaza in response to Hamas's October 7 attack continues later this summer, the diplomatic implications could be a cause for concern.
We have already seen calls for Israel to be expelled from the Eurovision Song Contest, with the Olympics being Eurovision on the biggest stage of them all.
In December, Jordan's soccer federation called on the world's sporting community to take “firm action” against Israel over its attack on Gaza “until the occupying power complies with international calls for a ceasefire.” More than 300 Palestinian sports clubs and grassroots organizations have also signed a petition led by the BDS movement calling for Israel to be banned from the Olympics.
Israel's participation in the Paris Games should not be reduced to a political litmus test, but should be viewed through the lens of athletic achievement and international cooperation. The Olympics are a platform to transcend political divides and promote understanding and unity across borders.
Fears of a boycott have already been raised ahead of this year's Games after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) banned the country from competing due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Russia responded to the Soviet Union's boycott of that year's Los Angeles Olympics by announcing a “Friendship Games” event similar to the one held in 1984. Parallels between Russia's actions in Ukraine and Israel's actions in Gaza have sparked controversial debates and focused attention on Israel on the world stage, including the war and the UN's continued antagonism over the World Court Tribunal. This means that Israel must act cautiously and not stand alone.
Earlier this year, The Nation, an American magazine known for criticizing Israeli policy, warned that “Israel and the IOC are on a collision course.'' “A closer look at how the IOC is treating Russia provides insight into what will happen, or perhaps should happen, to the state of Israel.” As the guardian of Olympic ideals, the IOC We are committed to maintaining neutrality and inclusiveness in the face of this reality.
Israel is unlikely to face similar repercussions from the IOC unless the war is deeply morally egregious, but it would raise complex moral and diplomatic considerations.
Israel's participation in the Olympics was endorsed by IOC President Thomas Bach earlier this month, and should be celebrated, but countries could decide to boycott the games on their own. But if the IOC changes its stance, there will likely be an outcry not only from official government agencies but also from those who believe that Israel's war against Hamas, which began with the worst genocide of Jews since the Holocaust, is just and justified. is. The real battle begins from there.
