Asi Maman
Youth team players celebrate (Photo by Seb Day – UEFA via Sportsfile)
Israel’s youth team will be able to participate in the World Cup. After the great achievement of the team with the qualification for the European Championship finals until the age of 19, there was concern that the Israeli team would not be able to participate in the world championship to which it qualified, but the host country sent a reassuring message.
Following her promotion to the Euro 19 finals, the Israeli team secured a ticket to the World Cup to be held in Indonesia in May 2023, but the host country has no official relations with Israel and pro-Palestinian organizations have demanded that Ofir Haim’s team not be able to participate in the event.
As you may recall, in 1958 the Indonesian team refused to play against Israel in the World Cup qualifiers. In 1962, Indonesia refused to allow Israel to participate in the Asian Games it hosted on its territory. In 2006 Indonesia withdrew from an international tennis competition because it was supposed to take place in Tel Aviv.
After the Israeli team qualified for the World Cup, the journalist, Simon Stone The BBC reported that: “FIFA demanded that the Israeli team be treated with full respect following its sporting success with obtaining a ticket to the World Cup up to the age of 20 which will take place next year in Indonesia, following its successful Euro-19 appearance, when Israel has no diplomatic relations with the host country.” .
Following this, according to reports in Indonesia, the country’s Minister of Youth and Sports, Zaynudin Amali, stated that there is no hesitation about Israel’s participation in the tournament, because the issue has already been discussed and approved by all parties involved, including his country hosting the World Cup, as early as 2019.
FIFA says it expects Israel to be treated ‘with respect + recognition for the achieved sporting performance’ during the U20 World Cup in Indonesia next year. Israel have qualified due to U19 Euros performance. Indonesia has no diplomatic relations with Israel.
— Simon Stone (@sistoney67) June 30, 2022
The Foreign Ministry also clarified that this is a FIFA event and therefore there is no problem in allowing Israelis to obtain visas to enter the country. Following these statements, the sports sections of the country even wrote in the headlines: “Hello to the Israeli team.”
Meanwhile, the General Security Service congratulated the youth team on its Facebook account: “How was your Sabbath? Because we were privileged to be a part of history. We had the honor of being there with you and taking care of your safety. See you at the World Cup in Indonesia. go go Israel”.
