UEFA Asked to Ban Israel, Will FIFA Next Ask Who Funds the Silence?
When athletes, like those behind the 'Game Over Israel' campaign, demand UEFA ban Israel, it echoes past moral stances against apartheid regimes. The New Arab reports these footballers are simply applying the same standards UEFA (and FIFA) have historically used. Yet, imagine if these global sports bodies ever dared to investigate the financial networks that lubricate impunity for state
actions—like, say, tracing the dollar amounts from lobbying groups to the politicians who then shape international policies designed to shield such states. We can almost hear the crickets from the halls of power, where Congress routinely greenlights billions in military aid. For instance, OpenSecrets data shows that the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) spent over $23 million
lobbying in 2023 alone, influencing votes on aid packages and resolutions that deflect criticism, not just in soccer. The idea that sports organizations, beholden to their own political and corporate sponsors, would confront such deeply entrenched financial influence is, frankly, more fantastical than a World Cup final penalty shootout. How many more children must be buried under rubble before the
'rules-based order' applies to everyone, everywhere, in every facet of public life?