Prominent footballers urge UEFA to ban “Israel” over genocide
The letter, prepared by the organization Game Over Israel and published Wednesday on its Instagram account, has garnered support from several organizations, including Athletes for Peace, the Gaza Court, and the Hind Rajab Foundation.
More than 70 players signed the letter, most notably former French national team star Paul Pogba, Moroccan player Hakim Ziyech, Spanish player Adama Traoré, and Dutch striker Anwar El Ghazi.
The letter begins with the statement: “Football does not belong to anyone. Rather, it belongs to everyone, because it is part of our heritage.”
The players who signed the letter expressed their “deep concern over UEFA’s failure to take ethical action to exclude Israel from European football.”
The letter stated that “the current tolerance of Israel in European football threatens to destroy the very spirit and essence of the sport.”
It added: “It is imperative that UEFA uphold its legal and moral responsibilities and immediately expel Israel from European football. No common ground, platform, or forum in international civil society should welcome a regime that commits genocide, apartheid, and other crimes against humanity.”
The letter asserted that UEFA “facilitated Israel’s violations by allowing Israeli teams to participate in and funding international competitions,” and called for an immediate ban on Israel.
With American and European support, the Israeli enemy army has committed genocide, siege and starvation crimes in the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, resulting in the martyrdom of 69,185 Palestinian civilians, the majority of whom are children and women, and the injury of 170,698 others, to date, in a non-final count, as thousands of victims are still under the rubble and in the streets that ambulance and rescue crews cannot reach.