EXCLUSIVE: Over 30 Human Rights Experts Demand UEFA Expel Israeli Soccer Teams
European soccer’s governing body reportedly paused a vote on suspending Israel after Trump released his 20-point 'peace plan' for Gaza.
More than 30 international human rights experts have submitted a letter to the president of European soccer’s governing body on Thursday, demanding that the league move forward to expel Israeli soccer teams from competition until “justice and accountability” are achieved for Palestinians.
“UEFA must not be complicit in sports washing such flagrant breaches of international law, including but not limited to the act of genocide,” the rights experts write in the letter, which was shared exclusively with Zeteo.
The letter is signed by leading human rights lawyers, academics, and former UN officials, including Richard Falk, the former UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories; John Dugard, also a former UN special rapporteur on Palestine and a former member of the International Law Commission; and Elisa von Joeden-Forgey, executive director of the Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention.
It adds to a similar letter that Amnesty International sent to FIFA and UEFA on Wednesday, calling on the leagues to suspend the Israeli Football Association from competition.
UEFA reportedly paused a vote on suspending Israel from competition after President Donald Trump, alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, announced a 20-point “peace plan” to end the war, which appears to have included no official input from Palestinians. The US, which is co-hosting the World Cup next year, has previously said it will “absolutely work to fully stop any effort to attempt to ban Israel’s national soccer team from the World Cup.”
Banning Israel from soccer competition is imperative despite Trump’s announcement, “because, while the plan purports to offer a pathway to peace, in reality it undermines international law, Palestinian sovereignty, and the principles of self-determination,” the letter argues.
The human rights experts add that Trump’s plan “does not impose any obligations” on Israel as the occupying power in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.
Craig Mokhiber, who signed the letter, told Zeteo the group is aware of mass support within UEFA and European soccer at large for suspending Israel, and is wary of Trump’s plan being used as cover to curb the momentum.
“All of it comes packaged in this threat from Donald Trump, who said, ‘either you accept this or we’re going to let Israel continue and complete its genocide in Gaza.’ That’s not negotiation. It’s gunboat diplomacy,” said Mokhiber, who is the former director of the New York office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
“So we need to make sure that they’re not using this as an excuse not to do what they are morally obliged to do, and potentially legally obliged.”
The letter was organized by the #GameOverIsrael campaign, which is calling on soccer federations to boycott Israel’s national and club teams in order to effectively force FIFA and UEFA to suspend the country from competition, as was done with Russia after its invasion of Ukraine.
UEFA did not respond to a request for comment. FIFA Vice President Victor Montagliani has previously said the decision to suspend Israel lies with UEFA “first and foremost.”
The human rights experts’ letter is the latest in the growing calls to ban Israel from soccer competition. Alongside the #GameOverIsrael campaign, Turkey last month became the first member of UEFA to publicly call for Israel to be suspended. Spain’s prime minister has called on Israeli teams to be banned from international sports competition. Meanwhile, teams and associations in Ireland and Italy have also called for UEFA and FIFA to suspend Israel from global competition.
Israeli forces have killed more than 66,000 people in the past two years, though the number is feared to be much higher. This reportedly includes roughly 800 athletes in Gaza, with more than 400 soccer players killed. Israel has also destroyed or damaged the vast majority of sports infrastructure, including stadiums, gyms, and soccer clubs, in the enclave.
Read the full letter:
Dear President Čeferin,
We, the undersigned, are writing you to urge the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the Executive Committee and all UEFA members to fulfil their legal and moral obligations to uphold international law, and move forward with an immediate and complete ban of Israeli football, including banning their national teams, club teams and players, from participating in UEFA competitions until justice and accountability is achieved for Palestine and all Palestinians. We join UN experts in reminding UEFA that they are bound by international human rights law in accordance with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
A ban is imperative in response to the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry’s report, released on September 16, 2025, which provides irrefutable evidence that Israeli authorities have committed genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, all in violation of peremptory norms of international law.
Since October 7, 2023, Israeli occupying forces have killed at least 421 Palestinian footballers while systematically destroying Gaza’s football infrastructure, including stadiums and the headquarters of the Palestinian Football Association. These acts have decimated an entire generation of athletes, eroding the fabric of Palestinian sport. The failure of the Israel Football Association (IFA) to challenge these violations implicates it in this system of oppression, rendering its participation in UEFA competitions untenable.
Banning the IFA aligns with precedents set by UEFA against nations committing similar grave breaches, ensuring the integrity of international sport.
UEFA must not be complicit in sports washing such flagrant breaches of international law, including but not limited to the act of genocide. The UN Commission of Inquiry’s findings, alongside the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion of July 19, 2024, which declared Israel’s occupation since 1967 unlawful and a violation of fundamental principles of international law, underscore the systematic nature of Israel’s violations.
International human rights laws and UEFA’s obligations continue to apply despite the recent announcement by President Donald J. Trump’s of a 20-point plan for Gaza. This is because, while the plan purports to offer a pathway to peace, in reality it undermines international law, Palestinian sovereignty, and the principles of self-determination. It does not impose any obligations on the State of Israel, as the occupying power in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. It also fails to address the legal consequences of the genocide in Gaza or make any demands of Israel to provide reparations to the Palestinians. Peace cannot be achieved without justice and accountability.
A UEFA ban on the IFA remains necessary and urgent, and is required to ensure legal compliance. By continuing to host Israeli teams, UEFA risks becoming complicit in the normalisation of war crimes. We urge you to uphold the integrity of the sport and immediately suspend the IFA and all affiliated teams from UEFA competitions until Israel ends the genocide and its unlawful occupation, and fully complies with its obligations under international law.
Let football stand for justice, not impunity. UEFA can act now by imposing a sports ban on Israel’s national team, local clubs and players.
Sincerely,
Professor William Schabas, Professor of international law, Middlesex University, London, UK
Professor John Dugard, Advocate of the High Court of South Africa, Emeritus Professor of International Law, Leiden University and University of the Witwatersrand, former member of the International Law Commission, member of the Institut de droit international, and former UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967 (2001-2008).
Professor Richard Falk, Albert G. Milbank Professor of International Law and Practice, Emeritus at Princeton University, US and former UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967 (2008-2014).
Professor Michael Lynk, Professor Emeritus, Faculty of Law, Western University, London, Canada and former UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967 (2016 – 2022).
Professor Guy Goodwin-Gill, Emeritus Fellow and Professor of International Refugee Law All Souls College, Oxford University, UK.
Professor Alex Neve, Visiting and Adjunct Professor, Faculties of Law and Social Sciences, University of Ottawa and Dalhousie University, Canada.
Craig Mokhiber, Former Director of the New York Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights at the United Nations. An international lawyer and a specialist in human rights law, policy and methodology.
Daniel Machover, Solicitor, co-founder of lawyers for Palestine.
Professor Susan M. Akram, Clinical Professor and Director, International Human Rights Clinic, Boston University, School of Law, Boston, US.
Professor Ardi Imseis, Associate Professor of International Law, Faculty of Law, Queen’s University, Canada. Member, UN Commission of Inquiry on Yemen.
Professor Lynn Welchman, College of Law, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, UK. Commissioner, UN Human Rights Council Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic.
Professor Audrey Macklin, Professor of Law and Rebecca Cook Chair in Human Rights, Jackman Faculty of Law, University of Toronto, Canada.
Professor Mohammad Fadel, Professor of Law, Jackman Faculty of Law, University of Toronto, Canada.
Professor Ilias Bantekas, Professor of Law, College of Law, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar.
Professor Andrew Dahdal, Associate Professor, Associate Dean, College of Law, Qatar University.
Dr. Elobaid Ahmed Elobaid, International Human Rights and Justice Expert, Adjunct Professor, Georgetown University, former UN Staff.
Dr. Lex Takkenberg, international lawyer and former senior executive of UNRWA.
Diana Buttu, lawyer, Palestine.
Dr. Elisa von Joeden-Forgey, Executive Director of the Lemkin Institution for Genocide Prevention.
Dr. Mandy Turner, Senior Researcher at Security in Context, Visiting Senior Fellow, International State Crime Initiative, Queen Mary, University of London, London, UK.
Dr. Trita Parsi, Executive Vice President, Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, US.
Dr. Nimer Sultany, Reader in Public Law, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, UK.
Dr. Mazen Masri, Senior Lecturer in Law, City St. George’s, University of London, London, UK.
Professor Craig Martin Scott, Professor of Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, Toronto, Canada.
Professor Hengameh Saberi, Associate Professor, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, Toronto, Canada.
Professor Faisal Bhabha, Associate Professor, Academic Director of the Anti-Discrimination Intensive Program, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, Canada.
Professor Faisal Kutty, Associate Professor of Law Emeritus at Valparaiso University and affiliate faculty at the Rutgers University Center for Security, Race and Rights.
Professor Jillian Rogin, Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, Windsor University, Canada.
Professor Nicola Pratt, Professor of the International Politics of the Middle East, University of Warwick, UK.
Dr. Emilio Dabed, Governance Director, Legal Center for Palestine, Toronto, Canada.
Dr. Lena El-Malak, independent lawyer, London, UK.
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