PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 17, 2025
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A broad global coalition of human rights organizations, soccer fan associations, former soccer players, advocacy groups, and influencers launched a new campaign today calling on soccer federations in Belgium, England, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Scotland, and Spain to boycott the Israeli national team, Israeli club teams, and ban Israeli players from participating in domestic competitions.
The #GameOverIsrael campaign officially launches today with coordinated protest actions across the nine countries, demanding that federations take a principled stand against Israel’s ongoing assault on Palestinian life and infrastructure, including sports facilities and athletes in Gaza. Ordinary people across the world can join the chorus and demand accountability by joining a local protest and applying pressure on the soccer federations, who run the game they love and support, to take immediate action.
Richard Falk, President of the Gaza Tribunal, international law expert and former UN special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories, said:
“Israel has for many years used culture and sports to whitewash their violations of international law and human rights and sporting governing bodies have been shamefully complicit during this genocide. It’s perfectly legitimate and morally imperative to demand that football federations across Europe and the world boycott Israel. Normalcy is complicity in this abnormal time of prolonged genocide.”
Craig Mokhiber, former United Nations Human Rights official, and a specialist in international human rights law, said:
“We are living through a dark moment in history in which a people, locked in the chains of apartheid, are being exterminated before our eyes. None of us will be able to say we did not know. Inaction in such circumstances is complicity. But we do have the power to act. Sport is a powerful social force. And football, ‘the beautiful game,’ can be a powerful channel for action. Demand that your football federation, and all federations, boycott Israel. Keep football beautiful.”
Across Europe, soccer federations and national leaders are beginning to act — but symbolic gestures are not enough. Last month, the Italian Football Coaches’ Association urged the Italian Football Federation to demand Israel’s suspension from competitions. In Spain, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced nine new measures to stop the genocide in Gaza, including an arms embargo and a ban of entry to Spanish territory on all individuals involved in war crimes in Gaza. The Spanish soccer federation must follow suit and boycott Israel.
The Norwegian Football Federation pledged ticket revenue from its upcoming FIFA 2026 qualifier match against Israel on Oct. 11 to humanitarian aid in Gaza. Donations won’t stop Israel’s bombs from falling. Recent estimates indicate that well over half a million Palestinians have been killed by Israeli airstrikes, forced starvation, and siege — an estimated 380,000 of which were children under the age of five. It’s time for European soccer federations to join the global solidarity movement.
Ashish Prashar, political strategist, former advisor to the Middle East Peace Envoy, and Game Over Israel campaign manager, said:
“Our position is clear; Israel has no place in football. International human rights defenders and civil society will not abandon the legitimate demand for football federations to step into the gap left by their governing bodies and boycott Israel. It’s our collective responsibility to work together — fans, unions, the public — and flood our federations demanding they act now to boycott Israel and send a message that those committing genocide are not welcome on the pitch.”
Abed Ayoub, National Executive Director, ADC, said:
“To millions across the world, soccer is more than a game. It is a sport that unites hundreds of millions through its beauty, its fairness, and its respect. As the United States prepares to host the FIFA World Cup in 2026, Americans must not allow our stadiums to become platforms for whitewashing war crimes. It is widely acknowledged and recognized that Israel is a genocidal state — carrying out the slaughter of Palestinians and attempting to erase an entire people. Such a state has no place on the pitch, no right to use the world’s most beloved sport to whitewash its crimes. We stand with our European counterparts and demand that every soccer governing body take immediate and decisive action to bar Israel from international competition. The world must tell Israel that the game is over, and there is no room in sports for war criminals.”
Love Rovers Hate Racism, a Shamrock Rovers FC fan group, said:
“We are approaching the two-year mark of the genocide in Gaza. What more is there to say? Why haven’t football federations boycotted Israel? They’re supposed to represent football and the fans. It is unfathomable, unconscionable. They should be ashamed. We demand they act now and boycott Israel and get them off our pitches.”
The campaign is advised by Dr. Ghassan Abu Sittah, British-Palestinian Plastic Surgeon and founder of the Ghassan Abu Sittah Children’s Fund, Abed Ayoub, director of the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, and Craig Mokhiber, former UN human rights official, and supported by a growing list of organizations, including ADC, CODEPINK, The Gaza Tribunal, Health Workers 4 Palestine, the Hind Rajab Foundation, and Tech for Palestine.
Prominent individual supporters include Irish actor Liam Cunningham, Irish performer and activist Tadhg Hickey, British journalist and author Matt Kennard, former English football player and BBC commentator Gary Lineker, British surgeon and activist Nick Maynard, economist and former finance minister of Greece Yanis Varoufakis, British artist and performer Bobby Vylan, who have all endorsed the call for football to uphold its ethical responsibilities.
For press inquiries or interview requests, please contact: [email protected]; [email protected]
Visit our website to learn more about the campaign: https://www.gameoverisrael.com
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#GameOverIsrael: This campaign is powered by a coalition of ordinary people – organizers, activists, humanitarians, and soccer fans – fighting for justice, accountability and freedom for Palestine.
“To millions across the world, soccer is more than a game. It is a sport that unites hundreds of millions through its beauty, its fairness, and its respect. As the United States prepares to host the FIFA World Cup in 2026, Americans must not allow our stadiums to become platforms for whitewashing war crimes. It is widely acknowledged and recognized that Israel is a genocidal state — carrying out the slaughter of Palestinians and attempting to erase an entire people. Such a state has no place on the pitch, no right to use the world’s most beloved sport to whitewash its crimes. We stand with our European counterparts and demand that every soccer governing body take immediate and decisive action to bar Israel from international competition. The world must tell Israel that the game is over, and there is no room in sports for war criminals.”